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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said that Turkey does not set preconditions for dialogue with Damascus and that negotiations with the Syrian government should be oriented towards the ultimate goal, Reuters reported.

His remarks reflect a recent softening of Ankara's public stance toward Bashar al-Assad's government after more than a decade of war in which Ankara has backed rebels trying to oust the Syrian president, the agency noted.

Çavuşoğlu said that there is a dialogue between the intelligence services of Turkey and Syria, but denied reports of an upcoming meeting between Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Bashar Assad, Turkish TV station Haberturk reported.

"The information is not true. And Assad is not invited there," said the Turkish minister in a broadcast on Haber Global TV regarding media reports that a conversation between the presidents of Turkey and Syria is possible during an upcoming meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

On the occasion of the Astana format of negotiations to settle the situation in Syria, Çavuşoğlu said that this is "the only remaining process currently active".

Erdogan: Turkey has no appetite for the territory of Syria

The minister highlighted the need for reconciliation between the regime and the opposition in Syria in order to secure a new constitution and go to urgent elections under the supervision of the United Nations.

"The only solution for the future of the country is the political process and this must be achieved through reconciliation," Cavusoglu said.

In connection with Turkey's relations with Israel, the minister announced that the appointment of Turkey's ambassador there is to take place in the coming days. 

Syria

Mevlut Cavusoglu