Turkey 'not keen' to take part in military action against IS

Turkey has agreed to join the coalition of nations combating the Islamic State, though exclusively for “humanitarian and logistical operations” at the moment, according to Hurriyet Daily News.

The country is “keen not to take part in any active military operation in the region” but that the NATO airbase ?ncirlik in southern Turkey would be “available for use for humanitarian and logistical operations within the struggle against ISIL," an official source quoted in the newspaper has emphasised.

“But no armed flights, including drones,” the official said.

Saudi Arabia is hosting talks on Thursday with 10 Arab States, Turkey and US Secretary of State John Kerry, to discuss joint action against IS.

Kerry is looking to form a coalition of countries in the Middle East, to combat the IS, with Turkey's agreement making it the first prominent country to sign up

Many have criticised Turkey’s role in the rise of IS, particularly for the porous border that the country share with Syria though which foreign fighters have easily slipped into the war-torn country.

The town of Reyhanli on the Turkish border, in particular, was treated by the Islamic State as their own “personal shopping mall”, according to reports. While the country attempted to crackdown on the flow of Islamist militants into Syria, analysts have worried that former Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s desire to see the ouster of Bashar al-Assad has meant he was too lenient on potentially dangerous foreign fighters entering the conflict.

On Friday, an anonymous US official told Reuters that Turkey would have to play a covert role in any action against IS.

"Everybody understands that the Turks are in a special category," the official said. "Turkey will be part of the coalition but what does that mean? It doesn't cost much to get your flag up on the wall."

One Turkish diplomatic source pointed out that they had to act “with caution regarding the Turkish captives in the hands of IS.”

“The Americans have not asked for the operational use of ?ncirlik anyway,” he told Hurriyet. “We explained our position and they sympathised.”

Since the start of the civil war in Syria, Erdogan, now Turkey's president, has pushed US President Barack Obama to intervene militarily against the Assad government.

Last year's decision by Obama not to strike pro-government forces in the country allegedly infuriated the former Turkish PM and soured relations between the two leaders.

In July, Erdogan stated that he no longer talked to Obama.