STRASBOURG
Turkish parliament speaker has said his country will not condone any ethnic or religious group to use Syrian power vacuum to set up "de facto" administrations there.
"It is out of question for Turkey to allow any de facto rule in Syria to be formed around an ethnic or a religious group," Cemil Cicek told his counterparts in a conference meeting of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.
Cicek said Turkey was greatly concerned over tensions in Syria that could lead to irreparable divisions which he said also risked spill-over of ethnic conflicts and civil war in the broader region.
"It is imperative that Syria's national unity and its territorial integrity be protected," Cicek said.
The Turkish parliament chief also called for more international cooperation to handle Syrian refugee influx, saying escalating regime violence forced more Syrian to leave their homes each day.
"Number of Syrian refugees in Turkey has exceeded 85 thousand. Turkey has been doing all in its power to tackle the influx in the best way possible. The situation will not be sustainable under the current circumstances. Devising ways to find a solution to the problem inside Syria becomes ever more important," Cicek said.
Cicek accused international community of remaining indifferent to the crisis in Syria with no possible concrete action in sight from the UN Security Council.
"The burden of this tragedy is currently laid upon the shoulders of neighboring countries, which strengthens international community's indifference and stall reaction to developments in Syria. If things go as they do, Arab Spring will turn to an Arab winter," he said.
