ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that an inclusive administration is needed in Syria and called on the European Union to support the return of Syrians who fled during the country’s 13-year civil war.
“We have seen that we agree on the establishment of an inclusive administration in Syria,” Erdogan said at a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Ankara.
Western states are gradually opening channels to the new authorities in Damascus led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, though they continue to designate it as a terrorist group.
Erdogan said there was no place for terrorist organisations in the region, referring specifically to Islamic State and Kurdish militant groups. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has previously highlighted the importance of an inclusive transition process in Syria.
Erdogan also called on the European Union to support the return home of Syrians who fled the war, millions of them to Turkey.
“We expect the European Union to support returns to Syria,” he said.
(Reporting by Huseyin Hayatsever and Ece Toksabay; Editing by Daren Butler and Ros Russell)
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