Report: Syria has five conditions to resume talks with Turkey

Turkiye newspaper, known to be close to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, published a second report on Wednesday about a revival of Syria-Turkey relations claiming Syria has five demands to resume talks with Turkey. 

The newspaper last week reported that Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan could soon talk to Syrian leader Bashar Al Assad over the phone, adding that the two neighboring countries attained the phase of forming a joint commission in search of reestablishing bilateral ties and a Gulf country was meditating between them.

According to Turkiye, the Syrian regime demands the transfer of customs control in Idlib, Cilvegozu and Kesab, to secure a trade corridor from Cilvegozu to Damascus, as well as full control over M4 highway between Aleppo and Hasakah.

Damascus also demanded from Ankara to help ease the US and EU sanctions over businessmen and companies that support the Assad family. 

The Turkish delegation in return demanded from Damascus to clear YPG (Peoples’ Protective Units) completely from Northern Syria and set the conditions for the safe return of refugees, Turkiye newspaper said. 

Turkey sees the YPG, the main component of the SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) as affiliated with the PKK, a Kurdish armed group fighting against Turkey for four decades, therefore a threat to its southern borders. 

Ankara demanded that Homs, Damascus and Aleppo be pilot regions for the return of refugees in the first phase.

The Assad administration also demanded from Turkey to help Syria get back into the Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation.