Speaking about the monumental developments in Syria, Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed the media following the Turkish cabinet meeting on Monday afternoon. He expressed hope that refugee returns to the neighboring country would increase.

“The civil war, ongoing for 13 years in Syria, entered a new phase yesterday. The dictatorship that survived for 61 years through blood, brutality, oppression, and tyranny has completely collapsed. We welcome the clearing of Tel Rifaat and Manbij from terrorists. The Assad regime never abandoned its anti-Turkey stance. Our appeals for resolving the Syrian conflict through dialogue were arrogantly rejected by the old regime. The hand extended by our country was not appreciated, nor was its significance understood. Assad is gone, leaving behind a Syria where nearly 1 million people were massacred and numerous cities were reduced to rubble. I want our nation and the international community to know that Turkey has strictly adhered to the principles of neighborly law. We stood for peace, freedom, dialogue, and justice,” the Turkish president said, among other remarks.

“Despite the hostile stance of the toppled regime, we defended Syria’s territorial integrity and unified structure. Naturally, we never hesitated to raise our voice and show our reaction against injustice, lawlessness, oppression, and cruelty. This has been our consistent position from the beginning. Our sensitivity regarding Syria was never based on interests. The Syrian people are our brothers. Who can expect us to turn our backs on neighbors with whom we share a 910-kilometer border? When the war in Syria broke out, Turkey was the first place its people fled to. Our Syrian brothers and sisters knocked on our door to save their lives. We hosted Syrian migrants, whose population once reached 3.7 million but has now decreased to 2.9 million, for 13 years,” Erdogan continued.

“I believe the strong wind of change sweeping through Syria will bring beneficial outcomes for all Syrians, especially the refugees. As Syria stabilizes, voluntary, safe, and orderly returns will increase. To prevent the accumulation of signs we are already beginning to see and to ease movement, we are opening the border gate at Yayladağı (in Hatay province) for crossings. We will manage the voluntary return process of refugees in a manner befitting our history, culture, and 13 years of exceptional hospitality,” Erdogan added.

“Turkey has no designs on the land or sovereignty of another country. The sole purpose of our cross-border operations is to protect our homeland and citizens from terrorist attacks. Neither the PKK and its extensions in Syria nor ISIS are interlocutors for our country. Syria belongs to Syrians in all their religious identities. The Syrian people will determine Syria’s future. It is our duty to strongly support efforts to revive and rebuild their country. A Syria where all Syrians—whether Arab, Turkmen, Kurd, Sunni, Alawite, Nusairi, or Christian—can live peacefully is Turkey’s greatest goal,” concluded the Turkish president.

The UNHCR Calls for “Patience and Vigilance” Regarding the Repatriation of Syrians
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) called today for “patience and vigilance” on the issue of repatriating Syrian refugees following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.

“The UNHCR advises that focus remains on the matter of returns,” and hopes that developments on the ground will finally allow for “voluntary, safe, and sustainable returns—with refugees able to make informed decisions,” emphasized UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi in a statement.