The leader of the Turkish opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu, reiterated on Sunday that he will work to improve Turkish-Syrian relations when his party takes power and voluntarily repatriate Syrian refugees in Turkey.
“When our party takes power, it will transfer the Syrians to Syria of their own free will,” Kilicdaroglu said in a statement quoted by the Turkish newspaper Zaman, stressing that they will work to improve Turkish-Syrian relations.
During his participation in laying the foundation stone for the subway in Mersin state last January, Kilicdaroglu stressed that the first steps his party would take externally in the event of gaining power were to reform relations with Syria and Egypt. He added that the Turkish Republic would return to its founding position, referring to abandoning the policy of confrontation with other countries.
Kilicdaroglu also explained at the time that in two years at the latest, Syrian refugees would be repatriated, saying, “I am not racist at all, but let the Syrians live in peace in their country.”
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He stressed that his country will run for elections, and if it is not today it will be tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. He pointed out that “young Turks will change the authoritarian government through democratic means.”
He noted that young people who will vote in the next election will leave a very important legacy in the history of global politics.
Separately, Kilicdaroglu, according to the newspaper, pledged to release prisoners of conscience if his party came to power.
He said: “We will release Selahattin Demirtas (former co-chairman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party), Osman Kavala (civil activist and businessman), students of military colleges, journalists, and prisoners of conscience, depending on the extent of their injustice.”
Demirtas and Kavala are opposed to the policy of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s regime. Demirtas was sentenced to three and a half years in prison on March 22, 2021, for insulting Erdogan. Kavala has been in the regime’s prisons for more than four years.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
