Buseyna Shaaban, a senior adviser to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, commented on Ankara-Damascus relations.  In a statement after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's speech on 21 September, Shaaban said that the Turkish authorities are trying to use the issue of ‘rapprochement with Syria’ for their own interests.

“Today, Turkey is occupying part of our territory, a precious, valuable and rich part of northwestern Syria, and is carrying out a dangerous process of Turkification,” Buseyna Shaaban said. Shaban pointed out that negotiations with Turkey depend on the implementation of the principle of withdrawal from Syrian territory, adding that Ankara is ‘misleading’ when talking about the ‘normalisation’ process.

According to the London-based Al-Arab daily, Buseyna Shaaban said the following: “When Erdoğan spoke about his desire for rapprochement with Syria ahead of the Turkish presidential elections, it was aimed at winning the elections, but they offered nothing. They want to continue what they are doing on the ground, occupying our territories, wreaking havoc, attacking the Kurds. We have said that Turkey should accept the condition of withdrawal from Syrian territory. We did not say that they should withdraw immediately, but if they do not want to accept this principle, we will not sit at the table.”