Erdogan: Ready to Meet President Assad

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan revealed that he had previously met with Syrian President Bashar Assad, suggesting that they could meet again in the near future, affirming his readiness for this. Erdogan stated in a remark following Friday prayers: "In the past, Turkish-Syrian relations were good, and I met with Assad before, so it is possible for us to meet again in the upcoming phase, and we are ready for that." He added, "There is no reason that prevents us from restoring diplomatic relations with Syria." Erdogan continued, "We are ready to work together to develop relations with Syria just as we did in the past." He emphasized, "We should never have any intention or goal like intervening in Syria's internal affairs." Meanwhile, Assad confirmed during his meeting with Russian President's special envoy Alexander Lavrentiev that his country is open to all initiatives related to the relationship between Syria and Turkey, based on Syrian sovereignty over its entire territory on one hand, and fighting all forms of terrorism and its organizations on the other hand.