UN official praises open door policy for Syrians

The United Nations which has come under severe criticism from President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an for its call to open its borders to the recent influx of Syrians from Aleppo has voiced hope for the resumption of Turkey's "tradition of open borders and generosity." 

"I am the first one to say that we need to have a reduction of violence because to have a continued flow of refugees from the Aleppo area to the border is of course very complicated for anyone to deal with," U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson told the Hürriyet Daily News in an interview on Feb. 22.

"Turkish authorities have felt that the flow has been so great that they have not accepted entry at this stage. I have the impression that they have made exceptions in humanitarian cases - people who have been sick or in extreme ? cases," Eliasson said.

"So we hope that they are exercising this humanitarian consciousness which I am sure they have. I hope that the flow will be reduced and that in the end of course, Turkey will continue its tradition of open borders ? in this situation," he said.

"I have full understanding of the pressures that Turkey is feeling. But there is also the matter of the safety of the people in this area," Eliasson said. 

Turkey recently said it wanted a secure strip of territory 10 kilometers deep on the Syrian side of its border, including the town of Azez, to prevent attempts to "change the demographic structure" of the area.

Eliasson, however, appeared reticent to the idea, mainly due to the absence of a consensus among players on the ground and in the international community.

"This is a very complicated subject. There are different theories as to whether this could be helpful or not. It seems to me that for the time...