The French Defence Ministry and the French Foreign Ministry in a joint statement on Saturday said they had suspended arms sales to Turkey over Ankara's ongoing military incursion into the northern part of Syria.
"France has decided to suspend any plans to export to Turkey war materials likely to be used as part of the offensive in Turkey [...] This decision is of immediate effect. The EU Foreign Affairs Council, which will meet on 14 October in Luxembourg, will be an opportunity to coordinate a European approach in this direction", the two ministries said in the joint statement.
The Turkish offensive, dubbed 'Operation Peace Spring', inside northern areas of Syria is part of Ankara's long-stated goal to clear its border areas of both Kurdish militias and Daesh terrorists while creating a so-called safe zone along the cleared line. The ground and air attacks have reportedly resulted in many civilian deaths on both sides of the border.
Damascus views the operation as a violation of Syria's territorial integrity. A number of third countries, including Russia, have called upon Turkey to refrain from actions that could create obstacles for peace in Syria.
Turkey's military incursion into Syria has been condemned by the international community, including Western allies and the Arab world.
Washington has threatened Ankara with sanctions. Turkey said such threats would not make it curb the military operation.
*Daesh (ISIS, ISIL, IS, Islamic State) is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and many other states.
