Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday, January 25 that if a buffer zone is not created in northern Syria, his nation will establish their own, Al-Masdar News reports.

“We expect a safe zone and buffer zone agreement to protect our country’s borders from terrorists within the next few months; otherwise, we will create this safe zone,” Erdogan said, as quoted by the Anadolu Agency.

Referencing the Adana Agreement, Erdogan said that Turkey reserves the right to any land that threatens his country’s national security.

Erdogan has repeatedly warned that his nation’s armed forces will launch a major military operation in northern Syria to eliminate the ‘terrorist’ groups allied to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

However, due to the U.S. ongoing military presence in northern and eastern Syria, Turkey has been forced to delay their operation east of the Euphrates.