Israel troubled by Turkey, Syria joint military drill on shared border

Hurriyet Daily News with wires

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"Today we see a Syrian-Turkish drill, which is certainly a troubling development," Reuters reported Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak as saying. "But I believe that the strategic ties between Israel and Turkey will overcome even Turkey's need to take part in this drill."

Ankara announced on Sunday it would hold its first drill with Syria this week, using ground forces in a border area that has been the focus of a 25-year conflict between Turkey and the terrorist PKK organization.

The Turkish military says teams from each country will cross the border and visit an outpost as part of three-day exercises to improve security. The drill began Monday. 

Israel has extensive defense ties to Turkey, a NATO member and among the few Muslim nations to have built an alliance with the Jewish state. The Israeli and Turkish air forces and navies have held joint exercises.

Last year, Israel and Syria held several rounds of indirect negotiations mediated by Turkey.