Turkey cannot handle a fresh migrant wave from Syria, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Sunday, adding that European nations will feel the impact of such an influx if violence in Syria's Idlib region is not stopped.
Speaking at an awards ceremony in Istanbul, Erdoğan said more than 80,000 people were currently on the move from Idlib to Turkey due to the bombardments intensified by the Assad regime and its ally Russia in the war-weary region.
He said it was inevitable for Europe to see conditions like those in the 2015 migrant crisis unless it helped stop violence in the region.
Erdoğan also said Turkey was doing everything possible with Russia for the bombardments in Idlib to stop.
He said a Turkish delegation would go to Moscow to discuss developments in Syria on Monday, and that Turkey will determine what steps to take after those talks.
In September 2018, Turkey and Russia agreed to turn Idlib into a de-escalation zone in which acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.
Since then, more than 1,300 civilians have been killed in attacks by the regime and Russian forces in the de-escalation zone as the cease-fire continues to be violated.
If aggression by the regime and its allies continues, Turkey and the Europe face the risk of another refugee influx.
Over a million Syrians have moved near the Turkish border following intense attacks.
Since the eruption of the bloody civil war in Syria in 2011, Turkey has taken in over 3.6 million Syrians who fled their country, making Turkey the world's top refugee-hosting country.
