ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey will prolong an invite to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad “any time” for potential talks to revive relations between the 2 neighbours, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan mentioned on Sunday.
“We’ll prolong our invitation (to Assad); with this invitation, we need to restore Turkey-Syria relations to the identical stage as up to now. Our invitation could also be prolonged at any time,” Erdogan mentioned, in accordance with a presidency readout of an interview by Turkish media.
Turkey severed ties with Syria in 2011 after the outbreak of the Syrian civil struggle, through which it supported rebels seeking to oust Assad.
It has carried out a number of cross-border navy operations in opposition to militants it says threaten its nationwide safety, and fashioned a “protected zone” in northern Syria the place Turkish troops at the moment are stationed.
Talking to reporters on his flight again from Berlin, Erdogan additionally mentioned Ankara would reciprocate any optimistic steps from Damascus, and that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Iraqi Prime Minister may contribute to facilitating the contact.
“We have now now arrived at a degree the place if Bashar Assad takes a step in the direction of bettering relations with Turkey, we will even present that strategy in the direction of him,” Erdogan mentioned.
“Putin and the Iraqi prime minister have an strategy for talks to be in Turkey. We’re speaking about mediation all over the place, why not with our neighbour?” he was quoted as saying by the Turkish presidency.
Erdogan in June didn’t rule out a potential assembly with Assad to revive relations.
Syrian officers nonetheless have repeatedly mentioned that any normalization in ties can solely come after Turkey agrees to tug out hundreds of troops from the rebel-held northwest.