Buenos Aires, March 10 (NA) — The president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, warned his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, that any violation of Turkish airspace “cannot be excused.” Erdogan conveyed this to his counterpart during a telephone call requested by the Iranian side, according to a Xinhua cable cited by the Argentine News Agency. Earlier on the same day, Turkey's Ministry of Defense also reported that a ballistic missile launched from Iran was successfully intercepted over the Turkish province of Gaziantep (southeast) by NATO assets and ballistic defenses deployed in the eastern Mediterranean, with no casualties recorded. “Turkey is being negatively affected by conflicts in which it does not participate,” Erdogan stated, adding that “it will continue to take all necessary measures against this.” During the telephone conversation, Pezeshkian responded that the missiles that entered Turkish airspace “were not of Iranian origin” and that Iran will conduct a thorough investigation into the matter. Erdogan expressed his deep regret over the loss of lives, especially the girls killed in a bombing of a girls' school in southern Iran, and reiterated his condolences for the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. He expressed his hope that the election of Mojtaba Khamenei as Ali's successor will contribute to peace in the region. The telephone call took place amid increasingly intense regional tensions following the joint bombings by the United States and Israel against Iran, which began on February 28.
