Turkey may extend invitation to Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, says Erdogan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has signaled potential rapprochement and restoration of diplomatic relations with neighboring Syria, suggesting that Ankara would extend an invitation to the Arab nation’s leader Bashar al-Assad.
“We, together with Russian President Vladimir Putin, may have an invitation to Bashar al-Assad,” Erdogan told journalists on his return flight from the Kazakh capital of Astana, where he took part in the 24th summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
“If Mr. Putin can visit Turkey, this could be the beginning of a new process,” he added.
“The passing years in Syria have clearly shown everyone the need for establishing a permanent solution,” the Turkish leader said, referring to the foreign-backed militancy that has gripped the Arab country since March 2011.
Erdogan also underlined Syria's critical need for reconstruction and stability, noting that fundamental infrastructure has been extensively damaged there.
Turkey severed its relations with Syria in March 2012, a year after the Arab country found itself in the grip of deadly violence waged by foreign-backed militants, including those allegedly supported by Ankara.
The process of normalizing ties between Ankara and Damascus kicked off on December 28, 2022, when the Russian, Syrian and Turkish defense ministers met in Moscow, in what was the highest-level meeting between the two sides since the outbreak of the Syria conflict.
Since 2016, Turkey has conducted three major ground operations against US-backed militants based in northern Syria.
The Turkish government accuses the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militants of bearing ties with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant group.
Syria considers the Turkish presence on its soil to be illegal, saying it reserves the right to defend its sovereignty against the occupying forces.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has tied rapprochement with Turkey to Ankara’s ending occupation of the northern parts of the Arab country and its support for militant groups wreaking havoc and fighting against the Damascus government.
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