Türkiye hopes new Syrian administration embraces all facets of society: Erdoğan
ISTANBUL
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan voiced hope that the new, post-Assad administration in Syria continues with an approach that “encompasses and embraces all sectors” of the Syrian people during a speech at the 15th Ambassadors' Conference on Dec. 10.
Erdoğan said Ankara “wholeheartedly” believes that Türkiye’s “Syrian brothers who won their fight against a bloodstained, tyrannical regime” will be successful, referring to last weekend’s ouster of the Baathist Bashar Assad regime, which had been in power for decades.
Turning to ties between Türkiye and Iraq, Erdoğan said that Ankara sees Iraq’s territorial integrity and sovereignty as “extremely important.”
He stressed that the countries' joint fight against the terrorist group PKK, which threatens their security and survival, will continue.
The president also reaffirmed Türkiye's determination to put an end to the bloodshed in Gaza once and for all, stating, "I say it clearly that the route the Israeli government insists on and obstinately maintains is, in fact, not a true path."
Addressing efforts to reach a peace deal between the southern Caucasus neighbors of Azerbaijan and Armenia, Erdoğan said Türkiye hopes the “historic opportunity” that came with the liberation of the Karabakh region from occupation last fall will be crowned with an Azerbaijan-Armenia peace deal.
Relations between the former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement opened the door to ongoing normalization and demarcation talks.
Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh in September 2023.
Talks with Italian premier, EU commision head
Erdoğan and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni discussed the latest developments in Syria during a phone call prior to the conference on Tuesday, according to an official statement.
The leaders also addressed regional and global issues, Türkiye's Communications Directorate said.
Erdoğan told Meloni that Israeli aggression in Syria undermines the war-torn country's stability. He emphasized the urgency of freeing Syria from terrorism.
The Turkish president noted that recent developments have validated Türkiye's humanitarian and conscientious policy in Syria, reiterating Ankara's commitment to peace, freedom, dialogue, and justice.
Erdoğan also highlighted the importance of protecting Syria's territorial integrity and achieving lasting stability in the region.
Erdoğan and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also discussed recent developments in Syria in the wake of the rapid collapse of the decades-long Baath regime on Tuesday.
The process for Syrians' voluntary return from Türkiye has been planned, and efforts for Syria's reconstruction will help accelerate that return, Erdoğan told von der Leyen in a phone call, according to a statement from the directorate.
During the Syrian civil war, some 4 million Syrians took shelter in Türkiye, more than any other country in the world.
“President Erdoğan stated that Türkiye will continue to strongly support the Syrian people in the upcoming period to ensure the removal of terrorist elements from Syria, restore its unity, preserve its territorial integrity, and enable all Syrians, from every ethnic and religious background, to live in peace,” said the directorate on X.
Referring to the conversation with Erdoğan as "a substantial exchange," von der Leyen announced on X that she will visit Türkiye early next week "to discuss what this development means for the region and beyond.”
She did not give further details on the visit, but added: “Syria’s territorial integrity must be preserved and the minorities, protected.”