Newspapers touch on Turkey –Damascus government rapprochement

The Arab newspapers published during the past week dealt with many issues that the world is witnessing, including:

Elections in the Damascus government areas for the so-called “People’s Assembly” and Assad’s statement

The London-based Al-Arab newspaper was among those who wrote about the elections the Damascus government held in areas under its control for the so-called “People’s Assembly,” stating, “The scene of the parliamentary elections for the fourth legislative round this year in Syria has changed from the previous three rounds that passed during the events that the country has witnessed since the outbreak of the crisis in mid-March 2011.”

The newspaper pointed out that election campaigns and photos of candidates are no longer what they used to be, but some of them were content with just a few photos and relied on free virtual media in their election campaigns.

The squares and streets of Damascus and other cities were not crowded with pictures of candidates. Rather, there was a clear decline in the advertising volume of candidates, especially independents, and the presence of lists of businessmen.

In the same Syrian issue, the newspapers touched on Bashar al-Assad’s statement and his meeting with Erdogan, with al-Watan newspaper headlining, “We seek our interests first and foremost, and our principles stem from our interests that are linked to them and not separate from them.” al-Assad added: “We are not against any meeting, but what is important is its content and the results that could emerge from it.” A positive outcome that serves the interests of Syria and Turkey.”

The newspaper pointed out that: “President Bashar al-Assad reaffirmed that Syria deals positively with any initiative to improve the relationship between it and Turkey, because this is the natural thing, and no one thinks about creating problems with his neighbors. He stressed that if the meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will produce results, or if it is in the interest of the country, we will do it. However, the problem lies in the content of the meeting.”

Al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper wrote about the positions reached by both Turkey and the Damascus government regarding what the former indicated about a rapprochement with the latter, noting that despite the difficulty of achieving the Damascus government’s conditions of withdrawal from Syrian territory, Turkish officials continue to talk about that.

In it, it referred to Erdogan’s statement, “At a time when the region is constantly on fire, setting new equations in foreign policy for Turkey is more of a necessity than a choice.”

Addressing several aspects of old and ongoing issues and crises

Arab newspapers have been monitoring developments that have been ongoing for some time, including the expansion and escalation of the war between Israel and Hamas, efforts for a “truce,” and Syrian refugees.

One of the topics that is still pending and continues to be talked about is Syrian refugees. It was not far from bulletins or what was covered in Arab newspapers.

The latest is what was published by Al-Arabi al-Jadeed newspaper, in an article by the Syrian writer Bashir al-Bakr, in which he talked about the conditions of the Syrian refugees who took refuge in Turkey. The writer indicated at the beginning of his article: “The Syrian regime does not accept their return, nor is Turkey able to continue to tolerate their presence. This is not just about thousands of Syrians displaced from their homes, but even millions who fled as a result of the ongoing wars, since the Syrians’ revolution for freedom and dignity in 2011. They took refuge in Turkey in waves from all parts of Syria. With the passage of time, the situation became more complex in the host country, which witnessed during the last three years a growing wave of racism, due to the political exploitation of the issue in the wake of the municipal elections in 2019, and the loss of the (ruling) Justice and Development Party (AKP) mayors of Istanbul and Ankara.”

The article pointed out that while the opposition Republican People's Party was the first to raise and exploit the issue vigorously, the Justice and Development Party succumbed to the bargaining and political blackmail tactics used by its opponents, rather than confronting the issue head-on. This caused it to deviate from its original course, leading to a state of widespread hatred towards Arabs. This has damaged Turkey's reputation and economy, and has resulted in Arab investors and tourists being hesitant to invest in and visit the country.

In the article, he held the Turkish authorities responsible for protecting the lives and property of Syrians who are subjected to attacks as a host country, in accordance with international laws. He added: The more the severity of the crisis increases, the greater the need to take action in order to find rational solutions to it, especially since it has become like a snowball rolling quickly, threatening to cause damage. It is crucial for both Syrians and Turks at the same time, and it can turn into a state of hatred between the two peoples, who have much more in common than what divides them. The recent attacks on Syrians and their property in more than one city in Turkey, and the accompanying unrest and reactions against the Turkish presence in northern Syria, are confirmed. Western Syria underscores the necessity of rapid intervention and not letting the issue escalate any further.

T/ Satt.

ANHA