Turkey will not back down after launching a military operation in northern Syria and there will be no ceasefire, its vice president has told Sky News.

In an exclusive interview, Fuat Oktay also said there would be no negotiations with the Syrian regime or Kurdish forces.

"You cannot talk or negotiate with terrorists," he said.

He added: "It's unrealistic and I wish they (Europe/NATO partners) would change their policy."

Mr Oktay claimed that anyone who questioned Turkey's actions had not taken time to consider the country's position.


It is already hosting four million refugees and a further three million could potentially arrive from the city of Idlib in northwestern Syria.

"Anyone who opposes us should understand Turkey first," Mr Oktay said. "This is unsustainable."

US vice president Mike Pence, who is travelling to Turkey, has called on Ankara to "stand down, end the violence and come to the negotiating table".

He added: "The United States of America simply is not going to tolerate Turkey's invasion in Syria any further."

The United Nations says 160,000 people have fled their homes to avoid the advance of Turkish troops.

Image: A Syrian woman fleeing the battle zone around the northern flashpoint town of Ras al Ain

Mr Oktay denied Turkish forces had bombed a civilian convoy at the border town of Ras al Ain, describing such allegations as "a lie".

He said: "It could take a matter of days to complete the operation and create a buffer zone but we are being extremely careful about civilians."

Mr Oktay also denied accusations that Turkey had sparked a humanitarian crisis.

"There is already a humanitarian crisis," he said. "There has been one for more than eight years. Naming our operation a humanitarian crisis is easy."

Regarding the strategically important town of Manbij, Mr Oktay said he hoped his country would not have to fight the Syrian regime.

"We hope it will not happen but we are determined to take control of Manbij," he said.

"SDF (Kurdish forces) changed the demography of Manbij by force. We were promised they (the YPG) would leave within 90 days (under agreement with the US), but it's been more than a year."

Mr Oktay appealed to other countries for assistance in constructing villages and towns in a safe zone.

"We want some help from the international community to let the refugees go back," he said.

Discussing a phone call with Donald Trump on 6 October, when the US president announced that US troops were being withdrawn from the Turkey-Syria border region, Mr Oktay said Turkey "didn't ask for permission".

He added that "the conditions forced us to take action" and we "tried to make the case".

Mr Oktay said the US was warned that unless the refugee situation and border security issues were addressed, Turkey would start its own operation.

He said Turkey would respect Syria's borders, adding: "No one should look for any other goals than our stated objectives."