The interim President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, arrived in Turkey on Tuesday for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, marking his second international visit since the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, an official told AFP.
Sharaa arrived in Ankara after flying in from Saudi Arabia, where he had been seeking assistance from the wealthy Gulf states to fund the reconstruction of his war-torn nation and revive its economy.
Turkey, which has close ties with Sharaa, reopened its diplomatic mission in Syria and sent its intelligence chief and foreign minister to meet with him immediately after his rebel forces, rooted in Islamic ideology, overthrew Assad on December 8.
The two leaders are expected to discuss “joint steps to be taken for economic recovery, sustained stability, and security,” said Fahrettin Altun, Erdogan’s communications chief, on Monday.
Despite being constrained by its own economic crisis, Turkey is offering to assist in Syria’s recovery after a devastating 13-year civil war.
In exchange, Turkey is likely seeking Syria’s support in combating Kurdish militants in northeastern Syria, where the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by the United States, have clashed with forces supported by Ankara.
