Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he does not reject dialogue and diplomacy with Syria. This was reported by Hurriyet.

 "First of all, we have to admit this: political dialogue or diplomacy cannot be completely severed between states. Such dialogue must always be supported," Erdogan said.

 Erdogan was responding to questions on Syria after Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu briefed on his brief conversation with Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mikdad in late 2021. Cavusoglu's statements prompted comments about a potential shift in Ankara's policy toward the Assad regime.

 "Diplomacy cannot be abandoned. The whole world has seen how much we need diplomacy. We have always been part of the solution. We took responsibility for solving the Syrian problem. Our goal was regional peace and the protection of our country from serious threats arising from this crisis ", Erdogan explained.

 It will be recalled that Turkey supports the opposition parties in the war in Syria. Damascus accuses Ankara of supporting "terrorist" groups in Syria.

 Earlier this year, Erdogan promised another military operation in northern Syria. Since 2016, Turkey has helped its Syrian allies capture hundreds of kilometers of territory and has advanced about 30 kilometers inland, mostly targeting the Kurdish YPG group, which it considers a terrorist organization.