President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Friday that Türkiye will continue its diplomatic efforts to lift international sanctions against Syria, Erdogan’s office said.
During their meeting at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Türkiye, Erdogan said efforts should be increased to revitalize trade and economic cooperation with Syria and that Türkiye will continue to provide support to the country, the statement said.
Türkiye is an influential actor in neighboring Syria as opposition groups it supported during the civil war took power last December. However, the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad aggravated already tense relations between Türkiye and Israel, with their conflicting interests pushing the relationship toward a possible collision course.
When Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House last month, he advised him to be “reasonable” in his dealings with Ankara.
Erdogan told the forum in Antalya: “We are in a state of understanding and close dialogue with influential actors in the region, especially Trump and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, in preserving the territorial integrity of Syria."
As if to underline this position, Sharaa sat just two places away from Erdogan’s seat in the hall.
It was Sharaa’s second trip to Türkiye as leader after Erdogan welcomed him to the capital Ankara in February.
In an apparent warning, Erdogan said that “no-one should misunderstand our cool-headedness and our stance of resolving issues through dialogue.”
The president has been a vocal critic of Israel’s operations in Gaza.
