ISTANBUL: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday (Jul 7) mentioned he would possibly invite his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad to Türkiye “at any second”, in an indication of reconciliation after the 2011 conflict broke ties between Ankara and Damascus.
Erdogan’s feedback come after tensions have mounted over the previous week after a mob went on the rampage, vandalising companies and properties owned by Syrians in a central Anatolian metropolis.
“We could ship an invite (to Assad) at any second,” Erdogan instructed journalists aboard a airplane from Berlin the place he watched Euro 2024, the official Anadolu information company and different media reported.
Türkiye initially aimed to topple Assad’s regime when the Syrian battle erupted with the violent suppression of peaceable protesters in 2011 and backed rebels calling for his ouster.
However extra just lately, Ankara has shifted focus to stopping what Erdogan in 2019 dubbed a “terror hall” from opening up in northern Syria.
He has lengthy mentioned he may rethink ties with Assad as his authorities is working to make sure secure and voluntary return of Syrian refugees.
Chatting with journalists, Erdogan mentioned some leaders together with Russian President Vladimir Putin prompt to mediate a gathering with Assad in Türkiye.
“Now we have now come to such a degree that as quickly as Bashar al-Assad takes a step in the direction of enhancing relations with Türkiye, we’ll present him the identical method,” Erdogan mentioned.
VIOLENCE
Turkish authorities this week detained over 470 folks after anti-Syrian riots in a number of cities sparked by accusations {that a} Syrian man had allegedly harassed a Syrian minor in Kayseri.
Erdogan on Monday blamed the opposition for stoking tensions and condemned the anti-Syrian violence as “unacceptable”.
The destiny of Syrian refugees is a burning concern in Turkish politics, with Erdogan’s opponents in final yr’s presidential election promising to ship them again to Syria.