Presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said yesterday that Turkey does not aim to violate the territorial integrity of Syria with the Afrin operation but try to prevent threats that are posed by terrorist organizations against the country, referring to a recent statement from the Syrian regime.

"Turkey has taken all the measures that pose threats to national security and will continue to do so. This can be Afrin or this can be Manbij. Turkey will continue to take measures by determining how, when and where all by itself without taking permission from anyone else," the spokesperson further said in Istanbul. The Syrian regime warned Turkey yesterday against launching a military operation in Syria's northwestern region of Afrin and said that Syrian air defenses stood ready to defend against such an attack.

"We warn the Turkish leadership that if they initiate combat operations in the Afrin area that will be considered an act of aggression by the Turkish army," Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad said in a statement carried by the state media. "The Syrian air defenses have restored their full force, and they are ready to destroy Turkish aviation targets in Syrian Arab Republic skies," he added.