Turkey talks with Israel for deconfliction with Syria

10/4/2025 6:13

Turkey has been holding

technical talks with Israel for deconfliction in Syria when

needed, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Wednesday.



Fidan's remarks came a week after Israel stepped up

airstrikes on Syria, declaring the attacks a warning to the new

government in Damascus as it accused Turkey of trying to turn

the country into a Turkish protectorate.



Turkish military teams had scoped out at least three air

bases in Syria where they could deploy forces as part of a

planned joint defence pact before Israel hit the sites with

airstrikes, Reuters reported last week.



"While we are conducting certain operations in Syria, there

needs to be a deconfliction mechanism with Israel, which flies

aircraft in that region, similar to mechanisms we have with the

U.S. and Russia," Fidan said on private broadcaster CNN Turk.



"There are technical contacts to prevent combat elements

from misunderstanding each other," Fidan said, adding technical

teams are contacting each other "when needed."



Fidan said technical talks with Israel are solely for

deconfliction in Syria and do not aim at normalising relations.



NATO member Turkey has fiercely criticised Israel over its

attacks on Gaza since 2023, saying they amount to a genocide

against the Palestinians. It has applied to join a case at the

World Court against Israel while also halting trade.

Israel denies the genocide accusations.



Fidan last week told Reuters that Turkey wants no

confrontation with Israel in Syria, but repeated Israeli strikes

on military facilities there are eroding the new government's

ability to deter threats from enemies, including Islamic State.