Ankara: Syria should not become a source of greater instability in the region, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over the phone on Tuesday, Trkiye’s Communications Directorate said in a statement. During the conversation, the leaders discussed bilateral ties, regional and global issues, as well as the latest developments in Syria, where anti-regime forces in a surprise offensive have taken over Aleppo and are advancing in other regions.
According to Anadolu Agency, Trkiye will continue to maintain its determined stance in fighting the PKK terror group and its extensions, who are trying to take advantage of the recent developments in Syria, Erdogan stated. Stressing that civilians must not be harmed in Syria, he said Ankara is exerting utmost efforts to restore calm in the neighboring country, which has been embroiled in a civil war since 2011.
The Turkish president emphasized that Trkiye backs Syria’s territorial integrity and is working for a fair and lastin
g solution. He added that it is important to open more space for diplomacy in the region and that the Syrian regime must engage in a political settlement process.
Clashes broke out on November 27 between Assad regime forces and anti-regime armed groups in the western countryside of Aleppo in northern Syria, marking a re-escalation of the fighting after a period of relative calm in the conflict that has gripped Syria for more than a decade.
In its 40-year terror campaign against Trkiye, the PKK-listed as a terrorist organization by Trkiye, the US, and EU-has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, infants, and the elderly. The YPG is PKK’s Syrian offshoot.