How much support did Turkey provide to Syrian opposition?
The Turkish prime minister claimed that Turkey has done more than Arab countries to aid the Syrian rebels, though he stopped short of providing details about Turkey's "support."
In an unusually candid interview with Al Jazeera Feb. 23, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu admitted to aiding anti-Assad groups in Syria, claiming that Turkey had done more than most Arab countries in this respect.
Speaking a few days after Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir put to rest speculation that Turkey and his country were preparing for a ground operation in Syria, Davutoglu made several remarks that are bound to go down badly in Moscow and Tehran, suggesting that Ankara is betting on a defeat of the Syrian regime and its principal allies Russia and Iran, much like the defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. He also said Turkey would not actively intervene in Syria because it was not confident of support from Arab countries, citing the condemnation by the Arab League of the deployment of Turkish troops in Bashiqa near Mosul on Dec. 3.
