Rockets in the Turkish sky

The missile was launched and neutralized on March 4 over the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. It reportedly first flew over the territories of Iraq and Syria. “Turkey reserves the right to respond to any hostile act directed against it and warns all parties to refrain from actions that could lead to an escalation of the conflict,” read the statement released by the Ministry of Defense.

This is the first such incident in Turkish airspace since the beginning of the US and Israeli attacks on Iran. It remains unclear what the actual target was and whether Iran truly intended to strike Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan responded to the outbreak of war in the Middle East. He strongly condemned the US and Israeli attacks, claiming they violate Iran’s sovereignty and international law. At the same time, he criticized Iran for striking “brotherly Gulf countries,” referring to Iranian attacks on US bases and civilian targets in Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates.

Turkey does not plan to take an active part in the conflict but has offered its assistance as a potential mediator in negotiations. However, the growing activity of Kurdish forces in the region could become a flashpoint. According to media reports, the CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces to support an uprising against Tehran. As an adversary of the Kurds, Turkey could in such a scenario side with Iran. This would create tension within NATO structures, as two member states would find themselves on opposing sides of the conflict.