Syria Welcomes Turkey Vow Not to Allow Attacks

Syria's government on Wednesday welcomed a pledge by Turkey not to let its territory be used as a springboard for any attacks against its neighbors.

"We welcome any Turkish statement aiming to preserve good neighborly relations with Syria," foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Maqdisi told a news conference broadcast live on state television.

His statement came after Turkey said it would not let its territory to be used as a springboard for attacks against other countries, in an apparent reference to Syria.

Syria's official news agency SANA reported Tuesday that Syrian border guards had thwarted an attempt by "armed terrorist groups from Turkey" to cross into the country.

"Turkey is not allowing any armed groups (to launch attacks) against other countries," a Turkish diplomat who declined to be named told Agence France Presse, when asked about the reports from Syria.

Turkey is home to about 7,500 refugees who have fled a regime crackdown on protests that the United Nations estimates has killed more than 4,000 people since mid-March.

It also hosts Colonel Riyadh al-Asaad in one of the camps on the Turkish-Syrian border, who claims to head a group of mutinous soldiers called the Free Syrian Army.

Ankara has been critical of the Syrian leadership's crackdown. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has even urged his one-time ally President Bashar al-Assad to step down.