Poland pledges 'full support' for Turkey in stand-off with Syria

Turkish Chief of Staff General Necdet Ozel (back-C) arriving at a military point during his visit Turkey-Syria border in Kilis, Turkey, 9 October 2012: photo - EPA

“We believe that Turkey's reaction last week was responsible and appropriate,” said Minister Tomasz Siemoniak on Tuesday, following a session at the ongoing meeting of Nato defence ministers in Brussels.

Siemoniak told the Polish Press Agency (PAP) that he had spoken with his Turkish counterpart, Ismet Yilmaz, “who thanked me for such a clear message.”

Siemoniak's statement comes after several days of artillery and mortar exchanges across the Syrian-Turkish border.

The clashes began after Syrian forces killed five Turkish civilians at an airbase near the Syrian border, an action which Damascus claims was accidental.

Speaking yesterday in Brussels, Nato secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen said that “obviously Turkey can rely on Nato solidarity” and that “we have all necessary plans in place to protect and defend Turkey if necessary.”

Unless it is attacked further, Turkey is not seeking immediate intervention by Nato forces. However, Ankara has dispatched additional fighter jets to an air base near the border as a precautionary measure.

Turkey makes no secret of its support for the Syrian rebels (Free Syrian Army) currently battling against forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.

Last week, fighting escalated in the UNESCO-listed city of Aleppo, which had been the country's commercial capital before conflict erupted.

On Tuesday, rebels seized Maaret-al-Numan, a key town near Aleppo that has a strategic location on the route from Damascus. (nh)