Türkiye rejected US President-elect Donald Trump’s claim that the rebel ouster of Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad was an “unfriendly takeover” by Ankara.
“We wouldn’t call it a takeover, because it would be a grave mistake to present what’s been happening in Syria” in those terms, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in an interview.
“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.”
On Monday, Trump said: “The people that went in (to Syria) are controlled by Turkey and that’s ok.”
“Turkey did an unfriendly takeover, without a lot of lives being lost,” Trump told reporters.
Since the early days of the anti-Assad revolt that erupted in 2011, Turkey has been seen as a key backer of the opposition to his rule.
It has hosted political dissenters as well as millions of refugees and also backed rebel groups fighting the army.
Fidan said it would be incorrect to characterize Turkey as the power that would rule Syria in the end.
“I think that would be the last thing that we want to see because we are drawing huge lessons from what’s been happening in our region because the culture of domination itself has destroyed our region,” he said.
“Therefore, it is not Turkish domination, not Iranian domination, not Arab domination, but cooperation should be essential,” he added.
“Our solidarity with Syrian people shouldn’t be characterized or defined today as if we are ruling Syria. I think that would be wrong.”
