Top military officer visits Syria for high-level talks

ANKARA

Türkiye's Chief of General Staff Metin Gürak paid an official visit to Syria, holding bilateral and inter-delegation meetings with Syrian defense officials, authorities announced on June 13.

During the visit, Gürak met with Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and Syrian Chief of General Staff Ali Noureddine al-Naasan, the Turkish Armed Forces said.

The visit comes as Ankara intensifies its engagement with Damascus through military-to-military collaboration. Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said earlier this month that Türkiye has begun providing military training and consultancy services to Syrian forces.

Since the abrupt collapse of Bashar al-Assad's government in December, Türkiye has emerged as the principal backer of Syria’s transitional authorities, offering political, economic and military support.

Turkish officials say their primary goals remain preserving Syria's territorial integrity, combating terrorism and ensuring border security.

While Türkiye currently maintains troops in northern Syria, Güler said discussions on their withdrawal are premature.

"This can only be reevaluated when Syria achieves peace and stability, when the threat of terrorism in the region is fully removed, when our border security is fully ensured, and when the honorable return of people who had to flee is done,” he said on June 4 in a statement quoted by local media.

Ankara has launched four major cross-border military operations in northern Syria since 2016, targeting YPG and ISIL elements. While YPG and the new Syrian administration recently signed a memorandum for the former's integration into the national army, Turkish officials accuse the organization of delaying full implementation.

Meanwhile, more than 273,000 Syrians who fled their country's civil war to neighboring Türkiye have returned home since the fall of Assad, Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said on June 13.

"The number of people who have voluntarily returned to Syria since Dec. 8, 2024, has exceeded 273,000," Yılmaz was quoted as saying by news agencies.

Some 2.7 million Syrian refugees are still in Türkiye, according to Interior Ministry figures released in May.

The Turkish government is hoping to accelerate the return of refugees to ease tensions over their presence in parts of the country.