News - Middle East: Turkey says a new ground offensive is "possible any time" in Syria, as Ankara continues to target purported positions of the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in the northeastern part of the Arab country.

Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, made the remarks on Saturday, following a Russian-brokered rapprochement between Turkey and Syria two days earlier.

"A ground operation is possible any time, depending on the level of threats we receive," he said, stressing, "Turkey never targets the Syrian state or Syrian civilians."

Kalin further noted that the Russian push for peace did not mean Turkey was abandoning the option of launching a new campaign that it has been warning might happen for months.

On Thursday, Syria tied a Moscow-brokered rapprochement with Turkey to end Ankara’s occupation of the northern parts of the Arab country and its support for militant groups wreaking havoc and fighting against the Damascus government.