Special to WorldTribune.com

ANKARA — President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is reviewing recommendations for Turkish military intervention in Syria.

Officials said Erdogan, supported by parliament, has been studying options for Turkish intervention in Syria.

The officials said the options range from the Turkish takeover of northern Syria to the training of Western-backed Syrian rebels.

“Turkey has become a country which can take initiative,” Erdogan said.

Officials said the president has decided to raise Turkey’s profile in the U.S.-led war against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. But they said Erdogan wanted any drive against ISIL to be accompanied by the strengthening of the Sunni revolt against Syrian President Bashar Assad.

“Everybody should know that Turkey is not a country that would let itself be used in efforts to find a temporary solution to the crisis,” Erdogan said.

In an address to parliament on Oct. 1, Erdogan did not outline any Turkish strategy against ISIL or Syria. But officials said the military and intelligence community have drafted options that would protect Ankara from ISIL while weakening the Iranian-backed Assad regime.

One option would establish a Turkish safe haven for refugees and rebels along the northern Syrian border. Officials said the haven would include areas controlled by the Western-backed Free Syrian Army, expelled from
northern Syria in 2013.

Officials said Erdogan would also enable NATO to use Turkish bases for ground operations against ISIL in Iraq and Syria. They said the Turkish military would also participate in incursions against ISIL strongholds in neighboring states.

On Oct. 2, parliament authorized the government to send the Turkish Army to Iraq and Syria. The vote allowed Erdogan to maintain Turkish military intervention for one year.

“As new crises are ongoing in the region, it is unthinkable for us to remain indifferent and timid,” Erdogan said.

  Free Syrian Army, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Syria’s Assad, Turkey’s Erdogan said ready to ‘take initiative’ in fight against ISIL, Turkish military intervention