Main opposition ‘corrects’ Syria policy during meet

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

CHP leader Kılıçdaroğlu expressed his party’ s on Syria view. AA photo

Turkey’s main opposition has clarified a misunderstanding concerning its Syrian policy, at a meeting yesterday with the president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy.

The Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu expressed his party’s views on Syria and corrected the false assumption that the CHP was supporting al-Assad, according to the party’s deputy chairman Faruk Loğoğlu.

Kılıçdaroğlu told Rompuy that “our party’s views on Syria are misrepresented or misperceived. In fact, the CHP favors democracy, peace and stability in Syria and does not support al-Assad, moreover the Geneva conference was proposed by the CHP a year and a half ago,” Loğoğlu said.

“I saw that our views on Syria match up with Rompuy’s,” the CHP deputy noted. Loğoğlu, who participated in the meeting along with CHP İzmir deputy Rıza Türmen, welcomed the president of the European Council’s will to meet Turkey’s main opposition party leader saying “it was a good signal for Turkish democracy.”

Van Rompuy signed the official Anıtkabir memorial book and wrote “Our countries have a shared past with Turkey and a common future.”

Meanwhile, Rompuy also met with the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) members. He expressed his support for the peace process on Kurdish issue, and said that they would continue to make necessary contributions, according to a written statement by BDP. k HDN