In Turkey

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday briefed key European leaders about the steps Greece has taken to guard its borders more effectively as hundreds of refugees and migrants were trying to make the crossing from Turkey into the European Union.

The presidents of Turkey and Russia spoke by phone Friday to try to defuse tensions that rose significantly in Syria after 33 Turkish troops were killed in a Syrian government airstrike, and a new wave of refugees and migrants headed for the Greek border by land and sea after Turkey said it would no longer hold them back.

NATO on Friday called on Syria and Russia to halt their airstrikes following the killing of 33 Turkish soldiers in northeastern Syria, as scores of migrants seeking entry into Europe gathered at Turkey's border with Greece.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin exchanged a phone call on February 28 and agreed to meet in-person very soon and to discuss new measures to de-escalate tension in the Idlib province of Syria as the Syrian regime killed 33 Turkish troops in an attack.

Government sources on Friday stressed that authorities are boosting security at the country's border following reports that Turkey will no longer stop Syrian refugees from traveling to Europe.

Turkish police, coastguards and border checkpoints have been instructed to stand down in the event of an increase in the flow of refugees to Europe, world news agencies said.

Turkey has decided to no longer stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe by land and sea. This was reported by TASS and Reuters, citing a senior Turkish official.

The deadly attack on Turkish troops took place although the location of our forces was known by Russia, Turkey's defense minister said on Feb. 28.

"This attack occurred even though the locations of our troops had been coordinated with Russian officials in the field," Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told reporters in Hatay, a southern Turkish province bordering Syria.     

Turkey has threatened to unleash a flood of refugees on Europe after at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in Idlib in Syria in an air strike on Thursday night.

An official said this in anticipation of a massive movement of refugees from the Syrian province of Idlib, where there are one million displaced people.

Hundreds of migrants walked through northwest Turkey toward its borders with Greece and Bulgaria on Friday, Turkish media reported, after a senior official said Ankara will no longer stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe.
On Thursday, Turkey said 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike by Syrian government forces in Syria's northwestern Idlib region on Thursday.