From the Liveblog of
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Syrian FM says Turkish officers visited base hit by Israel but denies planned military deployment
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Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani denies to Axios that there are plans for Turkish forces to deploy at an air base in Syria that Israel bombed this week, which he says Damascus told Jerusalem before the attack.
“There was no Turkish military build-up at the base in any sense that would justify such an interpretation,” he tells the news site. “The base was, in fact, largely empty. It had not yet been fully rehabilitated or become fully operational, and the work there was still at the rehabilitation stage.”
“Therefore, linking the strike to a Turkish military presence at the base is not supported by the situation on the ground as it stood at the time,” Al-Shaibani adds, while acknowledging officers from Turkey’s military visited the Abu Duhur base days before the strikes as part of what he describes as “ongoing military cooperation in the areas of training and the exchange of expertise.”
“Syria is currently working to rebuild its military and civilian institutions and develop their capabilities. It therefore benefits from cooperation and training programs with a number of countries, not Turkey alone. Similar cooperation has taken place and continues with Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and Russia,” he continues. “Syria is a sovereign state, and it has the right to establish relations of cooperation and alliance with any country, including Turkey.”
Al-Shaibani also tells Axios that his government has informed the Trump administration “that we do not trust Israel’s intentions towards Syria, and that we believe current Israeli policy, including its military escalation and actions on the ground, does not contribute to stability in Syria or the region.”
“Security cannot be one-sided. Just as we take Israeli security concerns into account, Israel must also take Syrian security concerns into account and seriously address our concerns regarding its expansionist policy and military operations inside Syrian territory,” he says.
The Times of Israel Community.