Mejlis extends condolences over deaths of Turkish troops

28.02.2020 16:30

Ukrinform

Refat Chubarov, head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, has expressed his condolences to the families and friends of Turkish soldiers who were killed as a result of military aggression by Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and Russia's military command, according to a statement of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, the text of which Chubarov posted on his Facebook page.

"As a result of the joint attack by Syrian and Russian military aircraft on a Turkish army convoy on February 27, 2020, 33 Turkish servicemen were killed, and several dozen people were wounded. The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people expresses sincere and deep condolences to the families and relatives of the dead Turkish soldiers, to the whole Turkish people," the statement reads.

The Mejlis also expressed condolences to the families and loved ones of civilians who became victims of the crimes committed on Syrian soil by Bashar al-Assad's regime and Russian soldiers.

The representative body of the Crimean Tatars drew the attention of the international community to the fact that "the Russian Federation's military support for the most odious and authoritarian regimes, including the dictatorial regime of Bashar al-Assad, is carried out against the backdrop of the war it unleashed against Ukraine and the temporary occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, which have been going on for six years."

The Mejlis called on international organizations to use legal mechanisms, "including the imposition of a total embargo on Russian energy carriers, to coerce Russia into compliance with international law, respect for territorial integrity and the sovereignty of other states."

The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people proceeds from the fact that "any aggressive actions carried out by Russia against NATO member states and other sovereign states must receive a decent and tough response."