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Türkiye supports the Jan. 18 agreement between the Syrian government and the YPG/SDF despite having reservations over certain aspects, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Tuesday, adding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will decide "very soon" on joining the Gaza Board of Peace.
"What we are looking at is the existence of an agreement. While Türkiye has specific reservations, we prefer to set them aside and prioritize support for the agreement as a matter of policy," Fidan told state-run Anadolu Agency (AA) and TRT.
"I believe that the implementation of the Jan. 18 Agreement, despite all its difficulties, will serve an extremely important function for Syria's unity and integrity," Fidan stated.
The Turkish foreign minister emphasized the importance of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's decree granting rights to Kurds who had been deprived under the Assad era.
"It is also extremely important that the decree issued by President al-Sharaa grants the rights of our Kurdish brothers, who for many years under the Assad era had been deprived of certain rights," he noted.
The minister stressed the decree is of critical importance both in guaranteeing cultural rights and enabling citizens to feel safer and more included in public life.
Fidan recalled that President Erdogan had made efforts before the civil war during the Assad era to ensure citizenship for many Kurds who had been denied it.
"When we were special representatives and went there repeatedly, we raised these issues every time, but these matters did not reach a conclusion despite our efforts at that time," Fidan said.
Fidan said he met with U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye and Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack early Tuesday morning, who shared his impressions from talks in Damascus.
"He met with both sides, and this time, both sides came together in a trilateral meeting in Damascus. There were meetings with the SDF side, the Damascus administration, and America coming together. Long meetings," Fidan said.
"We underlined that Türkiye will continue to play a constructive role. They acknowledged and appreciated these efforts. We will continue working on these issues," the minister added.
Fidan said Ankara views the ongoing manipulations by the YPG/SDF terror group regarding released Daesh members with "great concern."
"Of course, during this time, we view with great concern the Daesh game that is constantly being played," Fidan said, emphasizing that Türkiye has always been at the forefront in the fight against Daesh and will continue to advance this in great cooperation with Syria's new administration.
Syria's Interior Ministry announced Tuesday that 81 of the 120 Daesh detainees released by the YPG/SDF from al-Shaddadi prison in Hasakah province were recaptured.
The Syrian Army took control of Aktan (al-Aqtan) prison in northern Raqqa city center, which had been occupied by YPG/SDF and former regime elements, the Syrian Defense Ministry announced, noting that security has been completely established at the prison and security forces have been deployed around it. The ministry added that reports of clashes around the prison do not reflect reality.
The U.S.-led coalition against Daesh was negotiating a handover of the Al-Hol camp, which houses Daesh-linked civilians, to Syrian authorities, three Syrian sources speaking to Reuters said on Tuesday.
On President Erdogan's invitation to join the Board of Peace for Gaza's reconstruction and security as a founding member, Fidan said reviews are ongoing.
"Our president will probably make his decision on this matter very soon," Fidan said.
The minister noted invitations were also sent to Turkic republics, including Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, which Türkiye considers valuable.
"We will evaluate all of this with our partners and brothers in our region, such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan; with our brothers in the Turkic world; and with our friends in Europe, and then make our decision," Fidan said.
"If it provides even a gram of benefit for Gaza, if it saves one person's life in Africa, our president looks very favorably on these matters. But of course, it is also important to observe certain norms and Türkiye's interests," he concluded.
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