Erdogan-Assad Meeting to Be Held Next Month, Turkish Sources

Meeting of Bashar Assad and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Damascus in May 2008 (AP)
Meeting of Bashar Assad and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Damascus in May 2008 (AP)
TT

Erdogan-Assad Meeting to Be Held Next Month, Turkish Sources

Meeting of Bashar Assad and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Damascus in May 2008 (AP)
Meeting of Bashar Assad and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Damascus in May 2008 (AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Assad, could meet at the Kasab border crossing next month, the pro-government Türkiye newspaper reported on Saturday.

Russian Foreign Intelligence Chief Sergey Naryshkin and chief of Turkish intelligence Ibrahim Kalin agreed on the plan during a meeting they held in Ankara a few days ago, the newspaper said citing sources familiar with the issue.

Intelligence authorities involved in the potential rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus also held three meetings last June to prepare for the Erdogan-Assad talks, it said.

The Kasab border crossing hosted a meeting of Turkish and Syrian intelligence officials about three years ago when Russia triggered the normalization process between Ankara and Damascus.

The Türkiye newspaper, citing its sources, said Erdogan and Assad were initially supposed to meet in Baghdad, but Ankara is now considering the option of holding the summit at the Kasab crossing.

It added that following talks between Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last Wednesday, reports said the Assad-Erdogan meeting could be held in Moscow. But diplomatic sources were quick to deny it.

Last Tuesday, Türkiye’s Daily Sabah newspaper said Erdogan will meet Assad in Moscow next month, but a Turkish diplomatic source refuted the reports.

Spokesman for Türkiye's ruling Justice and Development Party Omer Celik said last Tuesday that preparation is underway for the Erdogan-Assad meeting.

Speaking after a meeting of the Party chaired by Erdogan, he said the Turkish and Syrian intelligence services held meetings at different times to prepare the necessary dossier related to the Ankara-Damascus relations.

Celik explained that the Turkish Foreign and Defense ministries will then provide their recommendations based on this preparation.

Following this stage, the file will be presented to the Turkish and Syrian Presidents, and Erdogan will then invite Assad to meet.

Turkish media reported that a plane carrying Naryshkin arrived at Ankara Esenboga International Airport last Wednesday, coinciding with the Putin-Assad meeting in Moscow.

Security experts said a Special Flight Detachment aircraft, thought to be carrying Naryshkin, traveled from Moscow to Ankara.

The Türkiye newspaper said the meeting held between Kalin and Naryshkin was decisive in determining the date and place of Erdogan and Assad’s meeting.

Türkiye severed ties with Syria in 2011 after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, in which it supported the opposition looking to oust Assad. The Syrian leader views opposition fighters as terrorists.



Palestinian President Abbas Appoints New Deputy in Major Step in Naming Successor

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
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Palestinian President Abbas Appoints New Deputy in Major Step in Naming Successor

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday named a veteran aide and confidant as his new vice president. It’s a major step by the aging leader to designate a successor.

The appointment of Hussein al-Sheikh as vice president of the Palestine Liberation Organization does not guarantee he will be the next Palestinian president. But it makes him the front-runner among longtime politicians in the dominant Fatah party who hope to succeed the 89-year-old Abbas.

Abbas hopes to play a major role in postwar Gaza. He has been under pressure from Western and Arab allies to rehabilitate the Palestinian Authority, which has limited autonomy in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.  

The PLO is the internationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people and oversees the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. Abbas has led both entities for two decades.