At the outset of the al-Assad regime's bloody crackdown, Turkey reacted cautiously but "the refugee crisis has forced Prime Minister Erdogan's hand politically," William Hale, SOAS Emeritus professor told SETimes. "He [Erdogan] could not go on sitting on the fence saying that his good friend [al-Assad] would somehow turn Syria into a democratic government."
Na početku krvave akcije Al Asadovog režima, Turska je reagovala oprezno, ali je „izbeglička kriza politički primorala premijera Erdogana da reaguje“, kaže za SETimes Vilijam Hejl, profesor emeritus na SOAS. „On [Erdogan] nije mogao i dalje da sedi po strani i govori da će njegov dobar prijatelj [Al Asad] nekako pretvoriti Siriju u demokratsku vladu.“