Turkey to Maintain Electricity Supplies to Syria
Turkey said Wednesday it will keep supplying energy to Syria despite previously threatening to halt exports to its conflict-wracked neighbor.
"The Syrian people need electricity now more than ever. We will continue to provide it," Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said, the Anatolia news agency reported.
Ankara had last month warned it was considering cutting power to northern Syria after Damascus shot down one of its fighter jets over the eastern Mediterranean on June 22.
Turkey and Syria were once close political allies but Ankara has become a vocal critic of Syrian President Bashar Assad and his regime since the launch of a brutal crackdown on dissent in March last year.
In November, Turkey halted joint oil exploration with its neighbor and also threatened then to cut electricity supplies.
Private Turkish company Aksa is expected to deliver about 500 million kilowatt hours between now and the end of the year, mainly to the city of Aleppo, where the Syrian army and rebels are engaged in a fierce battle for control.
Turkey also said Wednesday it was stopping its nationals from crossing the border into Syria for security reasons.
Source: Agence France Presse
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