Turkiye opposition offers incentives if Assad doesn’t meet Erdogan

Leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) Kemal Kilicdaroglu speaks during his party’s group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, Turkiye on December 20, 2022 [Mehmet Ali Özcan/Anadolu Agency]

The Republican People’s Party (CHP), the main Turkish opposition body, offered payments to the Syrian regime president in order to stop him from meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported yesterday.

According to the paper, the Turkish publication Turkiye Gazetesi revealed a letter sent by the CHP to Bashar Al-Assad pledging to withdraw Turkish troops from Syria, pay compensation and meet Syrian requests if the meeting with Erdogan is cancelled.

“Erdogan’s time in office is limited,” the letter reads, “and any meeting might affect the elections. Therefore, when we take office, we pledge to withdraw all forces from Syrian lands, including Idlib, as well as to meet all Syrian requirements and pay compensation.”

Turkiye Gazetesi reported Syrian TV saying that the CHP and the other ally parties had been working to cancel a potential meeting between Erdogan and Al-Assad.

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