Erdogan departs for UK

Speaking to reporters prior to his departure at Ankara's Esenboga Airport for the inauguration of the London Olympics, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan reiterated that a record number of Turkish athletes would compete in the London Olympics. A total of 181 Turkish athletes in 16 branches, including 67 paralympic athletes, will compete at the London Olympics. In reply to reporters' question on Syria, Erdogan said, "Assad and his close circle will soon be out of power in Syria. Syria is preparing itself for a new term. However, certain countries only cause a delay in the process," Erdogan said, adding that thousands of Syrians have been killed and around 200,000 Syrians have migrated into neighboring countries and that the Assad regime is now losing control. "What will happen in Syria must be determined by the Syrian people themselves. We need to open the path for the Syrian people. We need to bring the ballot box and let the Syrians establish political parties. A transitional government can prepare the new Syrian constitution, and elections could take place for the president and parliament of Syria," Erdogan noted. In response to a question on whether or not Turkey thought of a buffer zone against a possible terrorist organization PKK threat along the Turkish-Syrian border, Erdogan said that Turkey's priorities depended on the process and that they would evaluate the alternatives. Furthermore, Erdogan reasserted that Turkey would take measures to prevent Syrian Kurdish groups affiliated with the terrorist PKK from ruling northern Syria. "No one should attempt to provoke us. We will not bow to provocation but rather take whatever steps are necessary against terrorism," Erdogan added.