NATO Chief Sees No Need in Syrian No-Fly Zone

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the defense chiefs of NATO bloc agreed to provide anti-Daesh support by deploying airborne warning and control systems (AWACS) surveillance planes over the Turkish-Syrian border.

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) does not consider a possible no-fly zone is needed in Syria, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday.

Turkey has actively advocated for establishing a no-fly zone in northern Syria to US and NATO opposition.

"We are addressing the challenges we see to the south and also along the Turkish-Syrian border, but when it comes to the activities of the [anti-Daesh] coalition as such, I think it is important to leave that for the coalition to answer. We support the efforts of the coalition and we do it in different ways," Stoltenberg told reporters.

Speaking on the second and final day of the NATO defense ministerial meeting in Brussels, Stoltenberg said the defense chiefs agreed to provide anti-Daesh support by deploying airborne warning and control systems (AWACS) surveillance planes over the Turkish-Syrian border.

"All NATO allies contribute and support the efforts of the international coalition fighting ISIL, but NATO as an alliance is not a member of the coalition," Stoltenberg stressed.

Russian Ambassador in London Alexander Yakovenko named the possible establishment of a no-fly zone in Syria "very dangerous," noting that it would lead to a "de-facto division" of the crisis-torn Arab republic.