Ankara is fully responsible for ongoing hostilities in Syria’s Aleppo and Idlib provinces as Turkey ensures steady supply of weapons to terrorists and keeps shelling groups of Kurdish militia fighting against al-Nusra Front, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday.
HMEIMYM (Sputnik) — Last week, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on the ceasefire in Syria. The cessation of hostilities took effect at midnight on Saturday, Damascus time, generally holding across the country despite reported minor violations.
“Truck convoys with materiel and weaponry cross the border from Turkey to Syria round the clock. They are headed exclusively to areas controlled by al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham terrorist groups,” Lt. Gen. Kuralenko, commander of the Hmeymim-based Russian center for Syrian reconciliation, told reporters.
Earlier, the Russian center on Syrian reconciliation said that it was receiving reports from the Syrian General Staff and Kurdish armed groups supporting the ceasefire, that complain of continuing artillery shelling from Turkey.
“Artillery shelling of Kurdish militia units, fighting against Nusra Front, continues from the territory of a Turkish border post near Yanankey,” Kuralenko said, adding that these actions hinder the restoration of peace and reconciliation in the Aleppo and Idlib provinces.
On February 13, Turkish artillery began shelling positions held by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish group with links to the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), in Syria’s Aleppo Province.
On February 25, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that the truce in Syria is not obligatory for Turkey to follow if the country feels a threat against its security.