Erdogan urges G20 to help setup ‘safe zone’ in Syria

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan urged world leaders at the G20 meeting in China to set up a “safe zone” in Syria.

Turkey, which is home to more than four million Syrian refugees, made repeated pleas for a safe zone to stem the flow of refugees into the country.

Speaking in China, Erdogan said he had repeated a proposal for a “no-fly zone” in Syria during his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama, Reuters reported.

“The Syrian citizens can now find the opportunity to live more peacefully in their own land and their own houses.”

In a message directed at Obama and Putin specifically, he said: “A no-fly zone could be set up there, and that was my suggestion to both Obama and Putin. This could be achieved with the coalition forces. We are in an effort to take this step.”

According to plans previously proposed by Turkey, a “safe zone” would require the creation of 40 kilometre stretch of land within Syria with an internationally-policed no-fly zone to protect the area from aerial bombardment.