“There is no reason not to establish” relations with Syria, Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul.
"Just as we once developed relations between Turkey and Syria, we will act together in the same way again," he added, according to pro-government Daily Sabah news outlet.
Assad received Russian President Vladimir Putin's Special Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentiev in Damascus on Wednesday and expressed his “openness to all initiatives related to the relationship between Syria and Turkey, which are based on the sovereignty of the Syrian state over its entire territory,” according to a statement from his office.
Russia has acted as a mediator between Ankara and Damascus to help the neighbors reach a rapprochement.
In May last year, a meeting between the foreign ministers of Russia, Iran, Turkey and Syria was held in Moscow to draft a roadmap to improve strained ties between Ankara and Damascus. It marked the first official meeting of their top diplomats since the start of the Syrian civil war.
When the war erupted in Syria, Erdogan, then prime minister of Turkey, slammed Assad for committing violence against his own people. Erdogan demanded the removal of the Syrian president from power and labeled him a “terrorist,” but he later toned down his demands, instead seeking a rapprochement.
Through the conflict in Syria, Turkey has supported anti-government forces which have often been linked to Al-Qaeda and other extremist groups. Additionally, Turkey has pushed the boundaries of its southern border, especially in places like Afrin canton.
Syrians rose up against the Assad regime in March 2011, leading to a full-scale civil war that has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and has left millions more in need of dire humanitarian assistance.
More than 13 million Syrians, half the country’s pre-war population, have been displaced since the start of the civil war, more than 6 million of which are refugees who have fled the war-torn country, according to UN figures.
