Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan hailed the end of the Assad regime on Sunday, but also warned that Ankara was concerned that “Isis and other terrorist organisations . . . will take advantage of this process”.
His comments were a reference to Kurdish militants backed by the US as a bulwark against Isis, but seen by Ankara as a threat on its border.
Speaking in Doha, Fidan added that Turkey was in touch with Washington on the issue. “Access to chemical weapons should be blocked,” he said. “The new administration should unite all the people.”
In a conciliatory statement about the two countries that had been the Assad regime’s main backers, Fidan said Ankara appreciated “the constructive approaches of Russia and Iran”. He added that President Bashar al-Assad was now probably outside Syria.