Monitoring Desk
DAMASCUS: Syrian minister for foreign affairs Faisal Mekdad said on Saturday that Ankara would have to end its military presence in Syria to achieve a full reconciliation.
The Syrian foreign minister said that they cannot talk about resuming normal relations with Turkiye without removing the occupation. The minister expressed these remarks after meeting with the Iranian foreign minister in Damascus.
Ankara-Moscow
Turkiye has been a key supporter of the armed and political opposition to Syria’s President Bashar Assad during the 12 years of civil war in Syria and has also sent its own forces into swathes of Syria’s north.
Moscow, a key ally of Damascus, is supporting reconciliation between Ankara and Damascus, hosting dialogue between their defense ministers in December and aiming for talks between the foreign ministers and eventually presidents.
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Faisal Mekdad said on Saturday “a meeting between Bashar Assad and the Turkish leadership depends on eliminating the reasons for the dispute,” without providing more details or mentioning Turkish President Erdogan by name.
Syrian foreign minister was speaking after meeting in Damascus with Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian. He said that Tehran was “happy with the talks taking place between Turkiye and Syria.
