Intelligence sharing is important to prevent foreigners from crossing into Syria and Iraq to join militant groups, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.
Addressing a weekly briefing in Ankara, spokesman Tanju Bilgic said, "It is important to ensure intelligence sharing with the concerned countries."
"It is not sufficient to take unilateral measures," Bilgic said. He called on the countries from where the foreigners come to Turkey to cross into Syria to be more careful.
“Turkey has a long border with Iraq and Syria, and it is not easy to control this border,” he said.
Turkey’s ambassador to the U.K., Abdurrahman Bilgic, recently spoke about the same issue before the Internal Affairs Committee of the British Parliament Tuesday, where he referred about three missing teenage British girls, who reportedly crossed into Syria to join Daesh via Turkey.
“I think the primary obligation is on the shoulders of the source country because they should be stopped at the source country before exiting the country. (There is an) enormous pressure on the shoulders of Turkey. Our neighborhood is not a rose garden. So, if we had timely info and detailed info before the arrival, then it is, of course, easy for us to track," the envoy said.
Spokesman Bilgic also reiterated the Turkish ambassador’s stance and highlighted the importance of timely sharing of information.
British girls, Shamima Begum, 15, Amira Abase, 15, and Kadiza Sultana, 16, went missing from East London in early February and reportedly arrived in Turkey to cross into Syria to join Daesh.
The Turkish foreign minister also said recently that Ankara, since January, had deported 1,112 foreign fighters, who were allegedly trying to join Daesh.
Lasting solution needed in Iraq
Regarding the ongoing clashes in Iraq, spokesmanBilgic said, "The absence of comprehensive governments in Iraq and Syria is one of the reasons behind Daesh's emergence." He added that Daesh posed a threat to both Turkey and the region.
Turkey was continuing its logistical and intelligence support to the Iraqi government in Baghdad in its operations against Daesh.
"Ensuring a lasting solution is important. A lasting solution can only be achieved through political solution," the spokesman said.
About the use of Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey, spokesman Bilgic said: "Using Incirlik may be part of a comprehensive process, but at this stage, using Incirlik is not at stake."
Incirlik is a logistics base under Turkish command near Adana in southern Turkey.
Daesh is an Arabic acronym of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorist group.
