Turkish FM denies Trump claim of ‘unfriendly takeover’ by Turkiye in Syria
Al Jazeera
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan tells Al Jazeera the only ‘takeover’ in Syria was ‘the will of the Syrian people’.
Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has denied a claim by incoming United States President Donald Trump that the toppling of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad was an “unfriendly takeover” by Turkiye.
In remarks apparently praising Ankara, Trump told a news conference earlier this week that Turkiye was “very smart” and had carried out “an unfriendly takeover without a lot of lives being lost” in Syria.
In an interview with Al Jazeera broadcast on Wednesday, the Turkish foreign minister said it would be “a grave mistake” to describe the current events in Syria as a takeover by Turkiye.
“For Syrian people, it is not a takeover. I think if there is any takeover, it’s the will of the Syrian people which is taking over now,” Fidan said.
The foreign minister also said the “last thing” that Turkiye wants is to be seen as the regional power that has final control of Syria, pointing to a culture of domination that had brought ruin to the region.
