In statements reported by Turkish media on Friday, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin denied the existence of political contacts with the Assad regime, in response to a question, “Will Ankara establish relations with Damascus?”
Kalin said:
“There are currently no plans for diplomatic contact with the Assad regime. Our intelligence agencies have contact between them (for security purposes only). Turkey’s position on the Assad regime is clear, and we affirm support for the process of Astana and the negotiations of the Constitutional Committee.”
The foreign minister of the Assad regime’s Faisal Al-Maqdad claimed:
“There are no negotiations currently regarding the normalization of relations with Ankara. There are no contacts at the level of the two foreign ministries, and Turkey’s lack of commitment is an obstacle to the Syrian settlement process under the Astana framework.”
