At G20 meeting, Turkey pushes plan for "safe zone" in Syria
ISTANBUL, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he had urged world powers to set up a "safe zone" in Syria, providing people in the Arab nation with an area that was free from fighting and which would help stem the flow of migrants.
Speaking at a gathering of leaders of the G20 in China, Erdogan said he had called specifically for a "no-fly zone" in talks with the Russian and U.S. leaders.
The president has said the Turkish offensive in Syria aimed to drive Islamic State away from its border and ensure the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia did not expand in the area. Turkey says both Islamic State and the YPG are terrorist organizations.
The president said he was working with U.S.-led coalition forces and Russia to establish a ceasefire in Aleppo before the Eid al-Adha religious holiday expected to start around Sept. 11. (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Seda Sezer; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Nick Tattersall)
© Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The information contained in this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Reuters Ltd.
