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ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey will prolong an invite to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad “any time” for attainable talks to revive relations between the 2 neighbours, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan stated on Sunday.
“We are going to prolong our invitation (to Assad); with this invitation, we wish to restore Turkey-Syria relations to the identical stage as up to now. Our invitation could also be prolonged at any time,” Erdogan stated, in line 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, during which it supported rebels seeking to oust Assad.
It has carried out a number of cross-border army operations in opposition to militants it says threaten its nationwide safety, and fashioned a “secure zone” in northern Syria the place Turkish troops at the moment are stationed.
Chatting with reporters on his flight again from Berlin, Erdogan additionally stated Ankara would reciprocate any constructive steps from Damascus, and that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Iraqi Prime Minister might contribute to facilitating the contact.
“We now have now arrived at some extent 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 stated.
“Putin and the Iraqi prime minister have an strategy for talks to be in Turkey. We’re speaking about mediation in every single place, why not with our neighbour?” he was quoted as saying by the Turkish presidency.
Erdogan in June didn’t rule out a attainable assembly with Assad to revive relations.
Syrian officers nevertheless have repeatedly stated that any normalization in ties can solely come after Turkey agrees to tug out 1000’s of troops from the rebel-held northwest.
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