The beefing up military presence along the Syrian border by the Turkish armed forces is a contingency plan and act of deterrence, rather than a prelude to military intervention, Turkish analysts say.

"Bolstering military presence in the south is a response to clashes among different groups in the north of Syria," head of Ankara's International Strategic and Security Research Center, Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, told Xinhua.

"Kurdish rebels, radical and extremist groups as well as opposition fighters of Free Syrian Army all want to hold their ground against each other and against the Syrian pro-government forces," said the expert, who sees the border reinforcement is " mostly for deterrence and contingency planning."

In recent weeks, those clashes have escalated the threat level against Turkey's security, prompting the deployment of additional military units and heavy arms in border areas.

KURDISH AUTONOMY IN SYRIA

Turkey is worried about the prospect of a Kurdish autonomous region in northern Syria controlled by the Democratic Union Party, an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party, which is listed as a terrorist organization by many countries.

Turkish officials have repeatedly said that Ankara would not tolerate an autonomous Syrian Kurdish entity near its southern border.

Ankara could not ignore the possibility of an independent Kurdish administration in northern Syria as this might jeopardize the territorial integrity of Syria and place a security threat to Turkey, said Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, who, however, ruled out the military intervention, saying that situation in Syria is very chaotic and Turkish interference may further complicate matters. LOCAL ANXIETY

"Boosting military presence also aims to strengthen a sense of security for local population who feel quite anxious about cross border incidents," said political analyst Mesut Cevikalp.

On Wednesday, the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar was hit by three mortar shells from the Syrian side, triggering a return fire by Turkish military. At the same day, five Turkish patrol soldiers were wounded in Cizre border town by cross-border shots.

"Part of the reason behind the military build-up is to allay concerns among locals, whose daily lives are interrupted with a constant threat," Cevikalp said.

Turkish media reported that fighter jets have started flying hot, meaning that they were given orders to strike targets in Syria if they observe any threat, while the army was also reinforced by special forces unit from the local police departments.

Last October, the Ankara government obtained a parliamentary mandate to mount counterattacks into the neighboring Syria after mortar shells killed five civilians in a border town. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan convened an emergency security meeting to discuss a one-year extension to the mandate. Endi

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)