Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. As I said yesterday, I am deeply troubled by Turkey's announcement yesterday that it had launched a military operation in north-east Syria. I issued a statement yesterday noting that the fight against ISIS made decisive progress earlier this year. I said that any unilateral military action against groups that played a decisive front-line role in the fight against ISIS risked undermining that progress and could lead to further protracted instability and have serious humanitarian consequences. I urged Turkey, as I do again today, to refrain from this action. While we understand Turkey's security concerns regarding its own territory, unilateral military action cannot be condoned. The protection of civilians and respect for international humanitarian law must be paramount. The EU has issued a statement making similar points, which I fully support.

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