Turkey Promises Retaliation if Syria Nears Border

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared that, "any military approach to the Turkish border from the Syrian side will be perceived as a threat and will be dealt with accordingly."

His speech came after Syrian forces shot down a Turkish jet on Friday.

The two countries have arguing stories as to whose side of the border the plane was on when it was fired upon.

Over the past year there have been several incidents of Syrian troops crossing into or firing into Turkey, as they chased or fired upon escaping refugees.

NATO  has pledged it's full support to it's member state Turkey.

Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen continued on to promise that the alliance would keep a close eye on all happenings near the border area, but also said that, "It is my clear expectation that the situation won’t continue to escalate. What we have seen is a completely unacceptable act, and I would expect Syria to take all necessary steps to avoid such events in the future."

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad let loose a defiant speech re-accusing the United States, Israel, Al Qaeda, and others of working together to take his country from him.