Türkiye Welcomes Iran’s Engagement in Normalization Path with Syria

 A demonstration in Idlib against the Turkish-Syrian rapprochement on December 30, 2022 (AFP)
A demonstration in Idlib against the Turkish-Syrian rapprochement on December 30, 2022 (AFP)
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Türkiye Welcomes Iran’s Engagement in Normalization Path with Syria

 A demonstration in Idlib against the Turkish-Syrian rapprochement on December 30, 2022 (AFP)
A demonstration in Idlib against the Turkish-Syrian rapprochement on December 30, 2022 (AFP)

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said that his country welcomed Iran’s participation in the ongoing talks with Syria under Russian mediation.

He added that Tehran’s presence in the talks would facilitate the elimination of terrorist threats from Syrian territory, secure his country’s borders, and guarantee the safe and voluntary return of Syrian refugees to their homeland.

Kalin’s remarks, which he made in Ankara on Wednesday, came hours after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed that Moscow supported Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s interest in settling and normalizing the situation between the two neighbors, Türkiye and Syria.

During a press conference with his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Shoukry, in Moscow on Tuesday, Lavrov announced that an agreement was reached over Iran’s participation in the normalization process.

“It is logical that the upcoming contacts be dedicated to the normalization of Turkish-Syrian relations, with the mediation of Russia and Iran (the two guarantors with Türkiye of the Astana process),” he said.

Lavrov and Shoukry stressed the need to preserve the unity, integrity and sovereignty of Syria, resolve its political crisis, and respect the rights of its citizens to determine their own destiny and the fate of their state.

Earlier this week, Erdogan emphasized the necessity to maintain meetings between his country, Russia and Syria, with the possibility of Iran joining, in order to achieve stability in northern Syria.

He added that his country’s relations with Russia were “based on mutual respect.”

“Although we have not been able to obtain at the present time the result we desire, with regard to developments in northern Syria, we call for holding tripartite meetings between Türkiye, Russia and Syria,” the Turkish president said during a meeting with a group of youth on Sunday, as part of his campaign for the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for May 14.



EU Will Review Trade Deal with Israel, Kallas Says

Israeli army tanks are deployed at Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing war with Hamas, May 20, 2025. (dpa)
Israeli army tanks are deployed at Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing war with Hamas, May 20, 2025. (dpa)
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EU Will Review Trade Deal with Israel, Kallas Says

Israeli army tanks are deployed at Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing war with Hamas, May 20, 2025. (dpa)
Israeli army tanks are deployed at Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing war with Hamas, May 20, 2025. (dpa)

The European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said on Tuesday that there would be a review of the EU's trade agreement with Israel amid the "catastrophic" situation in Gaza.

International pressure on Israel has mounted in recent days as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has launched a renewed military offensive in Gaza.

Kallas said a "strong majority" of EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels favored such a review of the bloc's association agreement with Israel in the light of events in Gaza.

"The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The aid that Israel has allowed in is of course welcomed, but it's a drop in the ocean. Aid must flow immediately, without obstruction and at scale, because this is what is needed," Kallas told reporters.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, speaking in parliament, welcomed the EU decision and said 17 out of the 27 member states had backed the move.

EU sanctions on violent Israeli settlers have been prepared but have so far been blocked by one member state, Kallas said, without naming the country.