Turkish FM meets Syrian opposition

ISTANBUL

Turkish FM Ahmet Davutoğlu (L-front) and Foreign Minister Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu (R) meet with Syrian oppositon leader Burhan Ghalioun (2nd R). AA photo

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu met yesterday with representatives of the Syrian National Council, conveying condolences to council members for the massacre of 92 people over the weekend, Anatolia news agency reported.

The Foreign Ministry officials said that the delegation informed Davutoğlu about the situation in Syria and violation of human rights in their country in the meeting.

Turkey wants democracy for Syria as much as it wants it for itself and other Muslim countries in the region, Davutoğlu said. Foreign minister said Turkey wanted the changes that have taken place in Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen to take place in Syria as well.

Davutoğlu made the comments at the opening of the 21st International Congress of Muslim Communities, which was organized by the Research Center for Economic and Social Researches in Istanbul. It would be inconsistent to want democracy for Egyptians but not for Syrians, he said. “We want Syria [to have] what we wanted for ourselves. We want all Muslims in the world [to have the same]. We will work hard for that. And we will never side with tyrants.”

US should be more engaged: Gül

Meanwhile, President Abdullah Gül told CNN International late May 25 in an interview that Washington needs to become more involved in Syria as the country “cannot be led by its president anymore.”

Asked if the United States should play a leadership role, Gül said, “I think the United States is definitely the most important and definitely should engage more in this issue.”

Syria is an international issue, Gül said after CNN host Christiane Amanpour asked what it would take for Turkey to intervene in the Arab republic or persuade the rest of the world to do so.