Syria' Salman: Turkey's maneuvers are muscle-flexing targeting Arabs

In statements to Monte Carlo radio on Monday, Syrian Information Minister Muhammad Salman condemned the current Israeli - Turkish - US military exercises, criticizing them as constituting a grave threat to Arabs and Muslims as well.

The minister described these maneuvers as muscle flexing and a return to the atmosphere of the cold war. In remarks on Jordan's participation in the maneuvers as an observer, Salman said that any Arab participation in these maneuvers is not justified, reminding the Arab countries of their commitment to the Arab League charter, the Cairo summit resolutions and recommendations approved by the 8th Islamic summit, which regarded any dealing with Israel as a service to the Zionist schemes in the region, SANA reported.

He went on that the timing of these maneuvers coincides with the increase of Israeli stubbornness and in the wake of the Turkish-Israeli strategic alliance as well as with Turkey's establishment of a security incursion "cordon" in north Iraq similar to the Israeli occupied zone in South Lebanon.

The Syrian minister asserted that Syria will never be scared by such threats adding: "Syria will not sell out any inch of the occupied Arab lands."