Erdoğan Says Syria Security Will Benefit Entire Region

"As Syria transforms into an island of prosperity and stability in the region, we will all benefit. The winners of a unified and secure Syria will be Arabs, Turkmen, Kurds, Alawites, Druze, Christians and all other Syrian citizens," Erdoğan said at an event in the western city of Aydın.

Before the latest truce was finalized, there had been intense clashes between government forces and the YPG-led SDF over the past three weeks, in which the latter lost large parts of the area they once controlled.

"When the separatist terrorist threat in northern Syria is completely eliminated, not only the Syrian people but our entire region will benefit," Erdoğan said. "For this, first we will unite as 86 million people. We will be one, we will be strong, we will be vibrant, we will be brothers. Together we will be Turkey."

Ankara views YPG as the Syrian offshoot of PKK, a designated terrorist organization. The shifting dynamics in Syria coincide with a domestic anti-terrorism initiative in Turkey, which recently saw PKK announce a decision to disband and disarm. 

Erdoğan, a primary backer of the Ahmad al-Sharaa government, praised the administration’s "resolute leadership" in restoring security. He said the new political landscape is more inclusive than the previous regime.

"Terrorist organizations are being gradually driven out of the places they occupied by the Syrian army. Our Kurdish brothers, who were not even considered citizens during the old regime, are becoming an integral part of the new Syria, and their rights are being fully recognized," he said. "Similarly, our Turkmen brothers are undertaking very important roles in the new administration."

The president also noted that the fight against ISIL is intensifying under the current cooperation. "Thank God, the roots of all kinds of terrorism in our region are being eradicated," he said.

Erdoğan warned that ethnic and sectarian polarization would only bring "suffering, sorrow and tears" to the region, promising that Turkey would continue to act with "prudence, patience, and composure" to maintain its own internal stability.

“In both domestic and foreign policy, and in the process of a terror-free Turkey, we calculate, measure, and weigh every step we take before acting... To date, we have not harmed a single hair of our country or our nation. We have not allowed the fire that has engulfed the countries around us to spread to our country, God forbid, to affect us," he said. "In other words, the problems that have been a source of concern for our country for years are being solved one by one."