Turkish president urges Lebanese counterpart to normalise Syria ties

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has urged Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to visit Damascus in person to help advance the normalisation of relations between Lebanon and Syria, Al Akhbar reports, citing a Turkish diplomatic source.

The report said Erdoğan asked Aoun about the level of his contacts with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and stressed that a face-to-face meeting and direct dialogue would help lay the foundation for stable relations between Beirut and Damascus.

Ankara believes such ties should be based on the principle of non-interference in each other's internal affairs, the source said.

The source added that Erdoğan reaffirmed Türkiye's longstanding opposition to any Syrian military intervention in Lebanon's affairs and voiced support for developing bilateral relations based on mutual respect.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov