In an effort to normalize relations, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that he has requested to meet with Bashar al-Assad of Syria next week during UN meetings in New York.
Following the start of the Syrian conflict, Turkey and Syria suspended diplomatic ties in 2011. However, in recent months, Erdogan—who had previously backed rebel attempts to overthrow president Assad—has been seeking to mend fences with Damascus.
“We are now waiting for the other party’s response,” Erdogan told reporters before flying out to the United Nations General Assembly where he is due to speak on Monday.
Turkey’s concerns that the fighting may spread to other parts of the region have been made worse by the situation in Gaza.
Erdogan promised that “Turkey wants to play a role in putting an end to the atrocities committed in Gaza” and declared that “Gaza would be at the centre” of his talks in New York.
Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon come after 39 people were killed earlier this week in sabotage attempts against pagers and two-way radios used by Hezbollah, a Lebanese organization supported by Iran. Israel was cited by Hezbollah; the country has not responded.
“The recent attacks led by Israel against Lebanon have justified Turkey’s concerns about the risks of an extended conflict,” Erdogan said, adding that Turkey would do what it could “against the storm of deaths that global Zionism is unleashing in the Middle East”.
Erdogan also called on Western nations and the international community to “stop watching the murders committed by Israel and take deterrent measures”, without specifying further.
Large portions of northern Syria are under the authority of Turkish military and rebel groups backed by Turkey; according to UN figures, Turkey has accepted 3.2 million refugees from the war-torn nation.
Since the anti-government uprisings in 2011 were put down, millions of people have been displaced and over 500,000 people have died in the Syrian conflict.
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