Terminating counterterrorism operations and withdrawing from northern Iraq and Syria would mean terrorists could amass at Türkiye’s borders and threaten its perpetuity, according to Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu.

"Türkiye’s exit from the region would create a power vacuum that terrorists would rush to fill," Çavuşoğlu said in a televised interview on Monday evening and stressed that Ankara will not do so until stability is facilitated in its war-torn neighbor.

Çavuşoğlu argued that abandoning the 30-kilometer-deep (18-mile) security strip Turkish troops have been working to establish along the Syrian border would see "terrorists piling up at our borders and God forbid, something would blow up in Türkiye every other day."

Emphasizing that Türkiye’s national security was "more important than anything," Çavuşoğlu said, "We’re paying the price every day to keep our land safe, not because we’re enjoying it or we covet Syrian territory."

He explained that Ankara would consider exiting Syria once "total security" and civil peace are established in the region, but it "is currently impossible as it would spark serious threats."

Indeed, security in Syria was the key focus of another landmark moment between the officials from Türkiye, Syria, Russia and Iran on Tuesday. The defense ministers and intelligence chiefs of the four countries came together to discuss strengthening security in the country and concrete steps that can be taken to normalize Turkish-Syrian relations at a quadrilateral summit in Moscow, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced.

The sides have agreed to intensify efforts for the safe return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, as well as the fight against terror organizations and terrorist groups on Syrian territory in every way, the ministry informed in a statement.

Talks between the four nations will continue as agreed, it added. The landmark meeting, aimed at ensuring stability in war-torn Syria and the wider region, followed a similar summit between the same senior officials of the four countries in Moscow last December.

‘No preconditions’

Russia and Iran are both parties to the conflict in the region as they both supported the Damascus regime against its opponents during key moments in the devastating civil war that displaced millions and left half a million Syrians dead since 2011.

The four countries have been holding Moscow-encouraged talks over Turkish operations in Syria, the return of displaced Syrians and thawing ties between Ankara and Damascus since last year in an increasing sign of rapprochement between the rivals.

Earlier this month, Çavuşoğlu signaled that a meeting between the foreign ministers of Türkiye, Russia, Iran and Syria is likely to be held in early May in Moscow as well. Although no date or location has yet been announced, the foreign ministers' meeting would continue restarting high-level talks between Ankara and Damascus since the civil war began.

Any normalization between the two could reshape the Syrian civil war since Turkish backing has been vital to sustaining moderate opposition in their last significant territorial foothold in the northwest.

Erdoğan, too, has indicated the possibility of meeting regime leader Bashar Assad after talks between their defense and foreign ministers; however, according to statements from the Syrian regime, Damascus wants the end of the Turkish presence on Syrian territories before Assad will agree to such a meeting.

Çavuşoğlu on Monday dismissed Assad’s terms, saying, "We tell this to everyone, including Russia and Iran and Syria, we cannot maintain this (normalization) process with such a precondition. Then, of course, we can agree on a road map, but the steps are clear. Once stability is established in Syria, we can implement those steps."

Starting in 2016, Ankara launched a trio of successful counterterrorism operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents. Euphrates Shield in 2016, Olive Branch in 2018 and Peace Spring in 2019 targeted Daesh, the PKK terrorist group, and the PKK’s U.S.-backed Syrian wing, the YPG, which occupies almost one-third of northern Syria, damaging the territorial integrity of the country.

Turkish operations have eliminated over 37,000 PKK/YPG terrorists in the region, and similarly continue in northern Iraq, as well, where PKK members operate a network of hideouts and lairs to plot terrorist attacks in the country and against Türkiye. Most recently, Ankara launched Operation Claw-Sword to decimate YPG targets in Syria in retaliation for a deadly terrorist attack in Istanbul last November.

Erdoğan-Assad summit

As for the meeting between Erdoğan and Assad, Çavuşoğlu said it was still "possible" but insisted on "no preconditions."

"We just need preparations on a road map for the political process, the war on terror, and Syria’s stability," he noted.

It’s not just Türkiye but the whole world, save for a few nations, that severed ties with Assad, but at this point, problems are not being solved, the top diplomat continued.

"If we want to return Syrian migrants, then it would be beneficial to engage with Assad. Engagement is also important if we want to continue a more effective fight against terrorism, especially if we want to continue the fight to protect Syria’s territorial integrity. This is a particularly critical, sensitive security issue for us," he said.

"So long as there is no stability in Syria, it would cost Türkiye a lot," he added.

Opposition promises

Also addressing the Turkish opposition’s pledges to cease cross-border operations if Türkiye’s May 14 elections yield them a victory, Çavuşoğlu further slammed the opposition’s remarks about terminating counterterrorism operations, arguing they were motivated by "the support they receive from the HDP and PKK."

Six opposition parties in Türkiye are rallying under the banner of a coalition dubbed Nation Alliance in the run-up to the much-anticipated presidential and parliamentary elections next month. A prominent campaign promise made by their joint presidential runner Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who is challenging Erdoğan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), has so far been pulling Türkiye out of Syria, sending back some 3.5 million Syrian refugees and engaging with Assad.

On the other hand, Kılıçdaroğlu enjoys the not-so-secret backing of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which is broadly known for having links to the PKK and currently fighting a closure suit because of it. Their alliance, which included Kılıçdaroğlu’s implication that he would free PKK ringleader Abdullah Öcalan from jail if he were to win, has been nothing but controversial, drawing criticism from supporters and opponents alike.

"Their remarks are very dangerous because such a move would jeopardize Türkiye’s perpetuity," Çavuşoğlu underlined.

Kılıçdaroğlu-U.S. envoy

Çavuşoğlu went on to comment on Kılıçdaroğlu’s meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Ankara Jeffry Flake in March. "It was perhaps a show of support, but it’s not right for them to meet during a pre-election period. It’s not right for (Flake) to appear as if he’s taking sides (in the presidential race). Anyone can meet anybody ordinarily, but it’s not right for Flake to be selective and meet a candidate right before an election," he said.

Flake’s move drew Erdoğan’s anger too, who accused Washington of covertly backing his opposition and declared he wouldn’t receive Flake.

The U.S. envoy wasn’t summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry after seeing Kılıçdaroğlu, but Çavuşoğlu assured Ankara has conveyed "the necessary warnings to his person."

Visa woes

Turning to Kılıçdaroğlu’s promise of visa-free travel to the European Union within three months of taking office, Çavuşoğlu reiterated that Türkiye has so far fulfilled 67 of the 72 criteria required for visa-free entry to the EU, leaving only five items on the list over which the bloc is "refusing to negotiate."

In the past year, under the pretext of the COVID-19 pandemic, many EU nations have caused six-month to one-year delays in visa application appointments for Turkish applicants. "We are aware that they are doing this to back us (the AK Party government) into a corner," Çavuşoğlu remarked.

He informed all ambassadors from Europe were summoned to the Foreign Ministry to be told of this. "I said the same thing to (U.S. Secretary of State Antony) Blinken too. If they made Kılıçdaroğlu such a promise (visa-free travel within three months), it shows that these delays are a deliberate attitude against us," Çavuşoğlu noted.

Türkiye will take the necessary steps if "these arbitrary practices don’t end," he added.

He also underscored that Ankara had suspended the Readmission Agreement with the EU, signed in 2013 in tandem with the Visa Liberalization Dialogue, due to the bloc’s "procrastination" over implementing the visa deal.

‘Indisputably NATO’

The Turkish diplomat further highlighted Türkiye’s 71-year-long NATO membership and argued that one of the two major threats to the security alliance was "terrorism."

"Türkiye’s foreign policy in the past two decades has been enterprising and humanitarian, being active and all-encompassing without showing one as an alternative. This all-encompassing approach covers Russia, the Gulf, the Muslim world, Asia, the Caucasus, Latin America and Africa. Therefore, we must maintain good relations with everyone," Çavuşoğlu explained.

Today, many countries describe Türkiye as "an ally that can thankfully speak with Russia and Ukraine equally," he noted. "We rejected Russia’s attack on Ukraine and expressed our support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, backing resolutions at the U.N. and anywhere else. We maintain our ties with Russia and don’t compromise our principles or fundamental policies. We don’t join the sanctions against Russia or Iran," he said.

Regarding Ankara’s mediator role between the warring sides, Çavuşoğlu mused, "Everyone envies it. The Black Sea grain deal would not be possible without us."

Self-sufficiency

"Türkiye must not rely on any other country; we must be self-sufficient and trust our power," Çavuşoğlu went on to say. "Competition for power will only increase worldwide in the upcoming period," he said.

Pointing to the support the PKK/YPG receives from the U.S., and the public leeway their branches enjoy in Europe, Çavuşoğlu said, "I would never trust the U.S. in the fight against terrorism. Why should I? I wouldn’t trust France, either. There is a double standard and hypocrisy there."