Erdogan calls for Iran diplomacy, praises Syrian ceasefire with Kurds

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he hoped the Iranian government will overcome what he calls a “period filled with traps” through dialogue and diplomacy.

Speaking after a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Erdogan adds that Turkey is closely following “scenarios trying to be written on the streets,” after Iran’s worst domestic unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Erdogan also says that the deal reached between the Syrian government and Kurdish forces after days of fighting must be implemented swiftly, including the full integration of Kurdish fighters into Syria’s armed forces.

Speaking after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan says Turkey will not allow any attempts to sabotage efforts to achieve peace and stability in Syria at a time when Syrians are longing for peace following years of conflict, adding the “period of terror” in the region was now over.

He praises the Syrian government for what he says was a very meticulous operation in the country’s northeast, and adds that Turkey’s government will continue to work towards its goal of a “terror-free” Turkey and region, referring to a peace process with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group that Ankara considers linked to Kurdish forces in Syria.