Erdogan rejects Assad’s desire for Türkiye to quit northern Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has addressed the issue of Turkish-Syrian relations in a statement at Ataturk Airport ahead of his visit to Saudi Arabia.

"We are not against meeting with the Syrian administration. Assad wants Türkiye to withdraw from northern Syria. This is impossible, how can we leave when these terrorists are at our borders? We expect a fair approach," TRT Haber quotes the Turkish leader as saying.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will arrive in Saudi Arabia on Monday on the first leg of a three-nation Gulf trip that will also take him to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The main agenda of the trip is to explore the prospects of further bolstering bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

The Gulf tour aims to strengthen relations between Türkiye and the three countries, according to Turkish official sources. It is expected that Erdogan will meet, during his visit to Saudi Arabia, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Saman, and Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.

On the second leg of the Gulf trip, Erdogan will arrive in Doha on Tuesday where he will hold wide-ranging talks with Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

The talks between Erdogan and the leaders of the three Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will focus mainly on further enhancing bilateral relations. The leaders will discuss international and regional issues of common concern, including developments in Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Sudan, Libya, and Palestine.