Turkish envoy hits back at Italian rap over Syrian offensive

(ANSA) - Rome, October 11 - Turkey's Ambassador to Italy Murat Salim Esenli hit back on Friday after Rome condemned Ankara's offensive against Kurdish forces in Syria.
    "We are shocked and disappointed by the statements of the Italian government because it is not what we expect from an ally," Esenli told a news conference. On Thursday the Italian government summoned the envoy to express its condemnation of the offensive.
    Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio had said he would call on the EU to take action to persuade Turkey to stop the operation.
    Premier Giuseppe Conte, meanwhile, warned that the chaos caused by the operation could spark the return thousands of former ISIS foreign fighters.
    The premier also said the Turkish government's "blackmail" that it could allow millions of Syrian refugees to go to Europe if the EU hinders the operation was "unacceptable". Esenli said the situation "is not black and white as it is presented in the press" and accused the EU of "jumping on the anti-Turkey bandwagon". "I hope the top levels of the government of Italy understand where we are coming from and why we are conducting this operation," he continued. "We are defending the Turkish borders, but also those of NATO and the EU. "We have explained the reasons for the operation, we communicated them to the United Nations.
    "If, after these explanations, there is criticism and comments, we consider this to be support of the terrorist organizations".