Turkish Deputy PM Hopes Ankara Will Not 'Engage in Syrian Conflict Alone'

Ankara is not considering to launch a military intervention in the Syrian conflict, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said Thursday.

ANKARA (Sputnik) — According to the deputy prime minister, Turkey hopes that Syria becomes "a state, where neither [Syrian President] Bashar Assad, nor Daesh exist."

"Turkey isn't going to engage in a war… But Turkey defends its sovereignty and will response to any attempt of attack. I hope that in this case, Turkey won't have to engage in the conflict alone," Kurtulmus told 24 TV television.

Last week, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on the ceasefire in Syria. The cessation of hostilities took effect at midnight on Saturday, Damascus time, generally holding across the country despite reported minor violations.

On February 13, Turkish artillery began shelling positions held by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish group with links to the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), in Syria's Aleppo Province.

On February 25, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that the truce in Syria is not obligatory for Turkey to follow if the country feels a threat against its security.