Erdoğan calls for end to past 'mistakes' as Syria rebuilds

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Jan. 27 called for an end to past "mistakes" in northern Syria, urging the full integration of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into the national army to ensure long-term stability.

"The path of reason and the path of conscience are one and the same. The right path for Syria is clear. I hope and wish that everyone sees that repeating the same mistakes will lead nowhere," Erdoğan said at an event in the capital Ankara.

The president specifically pointed to the failure to uphold a previous agreement regarding the SDF as a significant setback for the region. He described the lack of progress in merging the group into the Syrian army as a "major mistake."

"We attach great importance to the implementation of the ceasefire and full integration agreement established on Jan. 18," he said.

"Our Syrian brothers and sisters want peace. Syrian children no longer want to hear the sound of guns and bombs. No one has the right to make the Syrian people pay new costs. The time for terrorism and weapons is over. There cannot be a state within a state. There cannot be separate armed forces within a state."

Erdoğan said a stabilized Syria would provide a direct boost to neighboring countries, particularly Türkiye, through increased trade, investment and tourism.

"God willing, a major reconstruction and rehabilitation campaign will begin throughout Syria, especially in the settlements that the former regime reduced to rubble with barrel bombs," he said.

"As the effects of the oppression that cost the lives of nearly a million Syrians are erased and Syria heals its wounds and rises again with Türkiye's support, different winds will blow in our region. We can already see the signs of this."

Erdoğan noted that the Syrian economy has begun the process of integrating into the international system and that millions of Syrian refugees have already returned to their homeland. He characterized these as promising developments in the social and political spheres.

"I urge my Kurdish citizens not to fall for schemes aimed at undermining our eternal brotherhood and sowing discord among us; do not give credence to those who exploit the situation," he said. "Please do not give credence to those who try to fuel hatred."