The liberation of Syria will benefit Türkiye and Syria alike, according to the country’s new foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani.
“Türkiye suffered certain troubles, we know, but what has happened in Syria and Syria’s liberation will benefit both people,” al-Shaibani told Turkish state broadcaster TRT Haber on Thursday.
Al-Shaibani led the first high-level Syrian delegation to Türkiye on Wednesday following the ouster of Bashar Assad in a lightning anti-regime offensive last month.
Türkiye backed the Syrian opposition against Assad when the civil war broke out in 2011. Intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalın and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan were the first high-ranking officials to visit Damascus days after the revolution.
Calling for a peaceful transitional period and an inclusive government, Ankara has led the diplomatic efforts to help Syria regain its normalcy and ensure stability in neighboring countries where developments directly affect Türkiye.
Speaking at a joint news conference with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, al-Shaibani said Syria and Türkiye have made “a new history” and thanked Türkiye and Turkish people for standing by his country since the start of the “revolution in Syria.”
He said that the new administration aims to heal the wounds of the Syrian people and highlighted the importance of Syria’s territorial integrity.
“Türkiye has maintained its brotherly attitude for 14 years. Türkiye and Syria relations will be qualified. Shared diplomatic ties have started,” al-Shaibani told TRT Haber.
He praised extensive potential for construction efforts, which he said would greatly impact political ties.
“As you know, our relations were severed under Assad. We want our relations with neighboring countries to be good. This will strengthen our situation in the region,” the Syrian diplomat said.
He also hailed the hospitality of Turkish people in hosting over 3.4 million Syrian refugees over the past decade.
“Türkiye-Syria relations are very deep despite everything,” al-Shaibani said. “A new leaf has been turned, and we will consider ourselves as one people from now on.”
When asked about the type of future that awaits Syrian people in the post-Assad era, al-Shaibani said the expectations of the Syrian people would share in the reconstruction of the country.
He did not elaborate when asked about a concrete road map but said: “All Syrians will come together in the framework of the national dialogue and express their wishes. We want the Syrian people to be an essential partner and work together.”
The new administration in Syria is expected to hold the National Dialogue Conference this month to discuss the country’s future with all segments of society.
Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party’s regime, which had been in power since 1963.