Its foreign minister is there.
Haqqan Fidan met with the new leader of Syria Al-Jolani.
Photos and footage shared by the ministry showed Fidan and the leader of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which led the operation to topple Bashar al-Assad two weeks ago, embracing and shaking hands.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan met with Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Shara (Abu Muhammad al-Julani).
— DerinHaber (@DerinReport)
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had said on Friday that Fidan would go to Damascus to discuss the new structure in Syria.
“We should protect our national security”
Turkey will do “whatever it takes” to ensure its security if new Syrian authorities fail to address Ankara’s concerns about US-backed Kurdish armed groups it considers terrorist, the Turk said on Saturday. Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
Turkey considers the Kurdish-dominated People’s Protection Units (YPG) to be the spearhead of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has been fighting the Turkish state for 40 years and has been designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the EU.
Hostilities have escalated since the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad about two weeks ago, with Turkish-backed Syrian rebel groups seizing the city of Manbij, which was previously under the control of the SDF.
In an interview with French television network France 24, Fidan pointed out that Ankara would like the new government in Damascus to deal with the problem based on the territorial unity, integrity and sovereignty of Syria, adding that the YPG should be disbanded immediately.
“If this does not happen, we will have to protect our national security,” the Turkish minister stressed. Asked if that included military action, Fidan replied: “whatever it takes.”
Regarding the statements of SDF commander Mazloum Abdi, who referred to the possibility of finding a solution with Ankara after negotiation, Fidan pointed out that the organization should seek such an arrangement with Damascus, as there is now “a new reality”.
“The new reality will hopefully address these issues, but at the same time the YPG/PKK know what we want. We do not want to see any kind of military threat against us. Not the present (threat), but not a potential one either,” he underlined.
