Turkey had the right to protect its territory and airspace, says Stoltenberg

North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg talked about the war against terrorism during the press conference at NATO summit held in Brussels.

Asked about the Russia’s participation in the Islamic State, Mr. Stoltenberg expressed his concerns on the Russian presence in Syria saying: “I would like to see Russia playing a constructive role in Syria and fighting the Islamic State. So far, Russia has mainly attacked other targets apart from the Islamic State in Syria. We would like to see Russia focusing on fighting a common enemy, the Islamic State”.

Regarding the downing of the Russian jet by Turkish F-16 he said that there should be transparency on the issue and stressed that if similar incidents occurred, there should not be caused any tensions and misunderstandings.

At the same time, he stressed that Turkey had the right to protect its territory and airspace and that all parties should focus on how to de-escalate the tension and avoid a situation that could cause further problems.

Mr. Stoltenberg also pointed out that NATO would continue to provide military assistance to Turkey, which, as he said, is in the midst of conflicts and to support it as Turkey is a member of the NATO alliance.