ISTANBUL
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that no initiative targeting Turkey's honor and prestige was left unanswered and will never remain unanswered.
Erdogan's comments came only two days after Syrian artillery shells landed in south-eastern town of Akcakale killing 5 Turks and wounding 9 others.
Speaking at a public appearance in Istanbul to mark the beginning of a provincial transformation program, Erdogan said that they never wanted a war.
"However, we are not far from war. This nation of ours has come to the present time after seeing wars between continents and fighting," Erdogan stressed.
"Just as Turkey did not refrain from showing its reaction to the Akcakale incident, Turkey will not refrain from reacting politically and diplomatically to the massacre of the Assad regime of its own people," Erdogan noted.
"Such a tyrant and ruthless administration has lost legitimacy a long time ago and lost the chance to survive. Those who support such a (Syrian) regime understand with each passing day how mistaken they were and they find themselves in a more difficult position daily," Erdogan stated.
"It would be a deadly mistake to test Turkey's deterrence, determination and capacity," Erdogan also said.
