Russian President Vladimir Putin says the deployment of NATO Patriot missiles near the border with Syria only “exacerbates” the situation.
According to IRIB, Putin said in a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan after talks in Istanbul on Monday “Creating additional capabilities on the border does not defuse the situation but on the contrary exacerbates it.”
The Russian president stated “You know, as they say, if a gun is hung on the wall at the start of a play then at the end of the play it will definitely fire.”
He added “Why should we need extra shooting at the border? We are urging restraint.”
Putin arrived in Istanbul on Monday to hold talks with Erdogan over the issue of the turmoil in Syria. The president acknowledged that Moscow and Ankara could not reach an agreement on how to respond to the situation in the Arab country.
He said “Russia and Turkey for the moment cannot find a mutual approach on the methods of how to regulate the situation in Syria.”
On November 21, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the military alliance would consider “without delay” Turkey’s request for the installation of US-made Patriot missiles on its border with Syria.
