ANKARA
There has been progress in terms of stopping the entry of foreign fighters into Syria, but more must be done, U.S. President Barack Obama has said.
"In combination with the Turks and the Jordanians and others, what we are trying to do is not only shrink the environment in which ISIL can operate, but also to create an environment in which we stop the border flows of foreign fighters into Syria," Obama said in an interview with the BBC Thursday ahead of his trip to East Africa.
"We've made progress there, we need to make more, and that's where Great Britain's participation can help," Obama said when asked if he would welcome the British flying alongside America and launching airstrikes.
Obama praised Prime Minister David Cameron's government for being an "outstanding partner of ours on not just the anti-ISIL [Daesh] coalition, but on a whole host of security issues", and also for meeting the commitment of the 2% defense budget, which he noted was "really significant" considering the "confined budget" he is working with.
"And it is important for British leadership, but it's important for U.S. stability. Now, with respect to Syria, we consult closely, Britain's one of the leading members of the 60-nation coalition that's addressing ISIL," he added.
The U.S.-led international coalition has been staging airstrikes against Daesh objectives in Iraq and Syria since mid-September 2014.
In recent years, Turkey has adopted a host of security measures focusing on border regions to prevent foreign fighters from entering Syria.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office of Public Diplomacy, which shared official factsheets with Anadolu Agency on Thursday, the measures serve the preemptive goal of stemming the flow of foreign fighters at the earliest stage possible. The office says Turkish authorities have defined it as a primary goal to get hold of militants as they try to enter Turkey.
The measures indicate a multi-pronged approach, including the establishment of Risk Analysis Units at custom gates and transportation centers. The units, which are currently deployed, aim to bolster capacity for security checks on incomers.
More than 600 suspected foreign fighters from 83 countries have been arrested and deported this year. This number was about 520 in 2014.
At the border, the Turkish Armed Forces are taking extra measures to prevent foreigners from joining clashes in Syria.
Troops have dug 365-kilometer long ditches, and a 270-kilometer stretch on the border has been illuminated to make patrolling more effective.
Turkey has also fortified its border region by deploying personnel and vehicles on the Syrian border.
Currently, half of the 40,000 soldiers who are protecting the country's borders are working on the Syrian border, along with half of the armored vehicles and 90 percent of unmanned air vehicles and manned exploration aircrafts belonging to the border units.
