The meeting came after the US and the EU agreed to lift sanctions and allow Civil War countries to recover and rebuild.
Syrian interim president Ahmed al-Sharah met Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan and other senior officials in Istanbul as Western sanctions were lifted.
The two leaders were portrayed after Turkiye’s state media waved after an official reception and attended a meeting at Dolmabahce Palace on Saturday, in the country’s largest city.
Erdogan’s office said the Turkish president told Alshara that his country welcomed the lifting of sanctions. He also said, according to X’s statement, “Israel occupation and invasion on Syrian territory are unacceptable,” and that Turkiye will continue to oppose it on all platforms.
In a brief statement released through state media, the president said the leaders discussed “many mutual files.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yasar Goller, National Intelligence Agency Ibrahim Karin and Turkish Secretary of Defense Industry Hulk Golgan were part of talks that were shut down to the press.
Al-Sharaa, who wiped out Turkey’s support to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, was accompanied by his Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Kasra and Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani.
The Syrian interim leader was also accepted by Erdogan, the capital of Ankara, in early February on his second international trip after a trip to Riyadh to meet Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Both countries have been debating bilateral relations and deepening Syria’s reconstruction as regional allies helped persuade the US president to lift the devastating sanctions imposed on Syria.
Washington lifted its first sanctions on Friday as part of a drive announced by Trump on a regional tour earlier this month. The European Union also follows suit by lifting economic sanctions to help Syria recover after years of civil war.
The new Syrian government welcomed the lifting of sanctions on Saturday as the Foreign Ministry described it as “a positive step in the right direction to reduce humanitarian and economic struggles within the country.”
Trump’s envoy to Syria, current U.S. ambassador to Torkier, Thomas Barrack, said he met Alshara in Istanbul on Saturday, praised his leader who has so far “taken meaningful steps” regarding his relations with Israel.
The first US sanctions on Syria were imposed in 1979 when Hafez, Bashar al-Assad’s father, was in power. However, they were very levelled after the Al-Assad government launched a fatal crackdown on protesters in 2011.
Sanctions targeted entities or companies that cooperate with al-Assad facilities, including those involved in the reconstruction of the country.
Source link
