Turkey: Assad can be part of transition in Syria

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Saturday that his country will play a more active role in helping address the Syrian crisis within the next six months. Babies, children, innocent people should not die. “This means to not allow Syria to be divided on any ethnic base, for Turkey this is crucial”, Yildirim said at a news conference in Istanbul.

Kurds made up between 7% and 10% of Syria’s population of 24.5 million before the uprising against President Assad began five years ago.

“We may sit and talk (with him) for the transition”.

“In the six months ahead of us, we shall be playing a more active role”, Yildirim said. Yildirim said Saturday the European Union had still to deliver funds to help Turkey improve conditions for some 3 million Syrian refugees in Turkey and grant Turkish citizens visa-free travel.

But Istanbul is concerned about the growing power of US-backed Syrian Kurdish forces across the border and opposes any moves toward Kurdish autonomy or independence. A transition may be facilitated.

A future political settlement for Syria must not include Mr Assad, the PKK or “Daesh” – the so-called Islamic State (IS) group – he said. More than 300 civilians have been killed in a three-week surge of fighting and bombardment in Syria’s devastated Aleppo city, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Although Russia and Iran are Assad’s main allies which puts them at loggerheads with Turkey, this month Erdogan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin while Tehran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif came to Ankara during which Syria was on the agenda. “I don’t think they have a need for Incirlik”.

The Kurdish YPG militia is an integral part of the US -backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which are at the heart of Washington’s military campaign against Islamic State group and last week seized the northern town of Manbij from the militants.