Syria, Türkiye Discuss Roadmap for Safe Return of Syrian Refugees

Head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan (L), standing beside Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, has recently visited Damascus and held talks with Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk. (Reuters)
Head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan (L), standing beside Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, has recently visited Damascus and held talks with Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk. (Reuters)
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Syria, Türkiye Discuss Roadmap for Safe Return of Syrian Refugees

Head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan (L), standing beside Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, has recently visited Damascus and held talks with Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk. (Reuters)
Head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan (L), standing beside Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, has recently visited Damascus and held talks with Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk. (Reuters)

Head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Hakan Fidan and Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk have recently met in Damascus.

Daily Sabah newspaper that is close to the Turkish government revealed details of the meeting, which it said was an attempt to form a roadmap for the safe return of Syrians who sought refuge in Türkiye.

It pointed out that both sides discussed issues they consider a top priority, as well as the main articles in the road map that must be followed, stressing that tangible outcomes of the talks will take some time.

It quoted sources as indicating that discussions tackled the safe return of all asylum seekers, returning the properties to their owners, creating working and employment conditions, and ensuring that no verdicts are issued against Syrians wishing to return home.

The Turkish side underscored the importance of canceling Law No. 10, which the Syrian government passed on April 2, 2018 and allows for creating redevelopment zones across Syria that will be designated for reconstruction.

The law stipulates that people who own property in the zone are to be notified and have 30 days to provide proof of ownership. If they fail to do so, they will not be compensated, and ownership reverts to the province, town, or city where the property is located.

However, human rights activists considered it a mass punishment for Syrian citizens who sought refuge abroad.

The newspaper further pointed out that the regime requested the withdrawal of Turkish forces from all Syrian territories.

The Turkish delegation affirmed that Ankara is committed to Syria’s territorial integrity, but stated that these demands can be evaluated later, provided that the constitutional process is completed, free elections are held, and the Adana Anti-Terror Agreement signed between the two countries in 1998 is renewed.

Reuters quoted four sources as noting that Fidan and Mamlouk held multiple meetings over the last few weeks, a sign of Russian efforts to encourage a thaw between states on opposite sides of Syria’s war.

The contacts reflect a Russian policy shift as Moscow steels itself for a protracted conflict in Ukraine and seeks to secure its position in Syria, where its forces have supported President Bashar al-Assad since 2015, according to two Turkish officials and the regional source.

During the meetings, Fidan - one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's closest confidants - and Mamlouk evaluated how the two countries’ foreign ministers could eventually meet, according to a senior Turkish official and a Turkish security source.

“Russia wants Syria and Türkiye to overcome their problems and achieve certain agreements...which are in the interest of everyone, both Türkiye and Syria,” said the Turkish official.

However, one big challenge is Türkiye’s desire to include Syrian rebels in any talks with Damascus, the official added.

The Turkish security official said Russia has gradually withdrawn some military resources from Syria in order to focus on Ukraine, and had asked Türkiye to normalize relations with Assad to “accelerate a political solution” in Syria.

The Damascus-allied source said Russia had nudged Syria to enter talks as Moscow seeks to nail down its position and that of Assad in case it must redeploy forces to Ukraine.



UK Foreign Secretary Visits Syria, Renewing Ties After 14 Years of Conflict

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) welcoming with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in the Syrian capital Damascus on July 5, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) welcoming with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in the Syrian capital Damascus on July 5, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
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UK Foreign Secretary Visits Syria, Renewing Ties After 14 Years of Conflict

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) welcoming with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in the Syrian capital Damascus on July 5, 2025. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (R) welcoming with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in the Syrian capital Damascus on July 5, 2025. (SANA / AFP)

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy met in Damascus on Saturday with Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, marking the restoration of relations after 14 years of tension during Syria's conflict and Assad family rule.

Syria has been improving relations with Western countries following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad in December in an offensive led by al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group.

Al-Sharaa’s office said Lammy and the president discussed mutual relations and ways of boosting cooperation and the latest regional and international developments. Lammy later met his Syrian counterpart, Asaad al-Shaibani, state media reported.

A statement issued by Britain's foreign office said the visit showed London's commitment to support Syria as the new government seeks to rebuild the country's economy, deliver an inclusive political transition and forge a path to justice for the victims of the Assad government.

It added that there will be new UK funding to assist with the removal of Assad-era chemical weapons and provide urgent humanitarian assistance in Syria, to bolster UK and Middle East security and tackle irregular migration. The statement said the British government wants to ensure that the ISIS group's territorial defeat “endures, and they can never resurge.”

ISIS once controlled large parts of Syria and Iraq, where it planned attacks worldwide. It was defeated in Syria in March 2019 when the extremists lost the last sliver of land they once controlled.

The statement said Britain's support for Syria is set to continue, with the additional 94.5 million pounds ($129 million) package announced Saturday. It will provide urgent humanitarian aid to Syrians, support Syria’s longer-term recovery through education and livelihoods, and support countries hosting Syrian refugees in the region.

This handout photo released by the Lebanese Presidency press office on July 5, 2025 shows Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun (R) receiving British Foreign Secretary David Lammy at the presidential palace in Baabda. (Lebanese Presidency / AFP)

In April, the British government lifted sanctions against a dozen Syrian entities, including government departments and media outlets, to help the country rebuild after Assad's ouster. Weeks earlier, the UK had dropped sanctions against two dozen Syrian businesses, mostly banks and oil companies.

Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order ending many American economic sanctions on Syria, following through on a promise he made to al-Sharaa.

Syria’s new leaders have been struggling to rebuild the country’s decimated economy and infrastructure after nearly 14 years of civil war that has killed half a million people. In recent months, al-Sharaa visited oil-rich regional countries and France in May in his first visit to the Europe Union.

Also on Saturday, Lammy met in Beirut with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and they discussed the situation along the Lebanon-Israel border following the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war.

A statement issued by Aoun's office, quoted the Lebanese leader as telling Lammy that Beirut plans to raise the number of Lebanese troops along the border with Israel to 10,000. Aoun added that the only armed sides on the Lebanese side of the border will be Lebanon's national army and UN peacekeepers.