ISTANBUL 

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with EU Commissioner for Equality Hadja Lahbib on Monday to discuss bilateral relations and regional developments.

Meeting in the capital Ankara, the two discussed Turkish-EU relations and developments in Syria and Gaza.

Speaking after the meeting, Fidan outlined Türkiye's aims for Syria's transition to a sanctions-free normal economy, stressing the importance of improved economic conditions and reconstruction to enable the safe return of millions of displaced refugees.

Lahbib, expressing gratitude to her host, reaffirmed Türkiye's status as both an EU candidate country and key partner of the bloc.

She emphasized the region’s geopolitical complexity and the importance of collaboration with Türkiye in addressing those and facilitating international aid efforts.

She also commended Türkiye's vital support for Syrian refugees since the 2011 outbreak of the country’s civil war, highlighting Ankara's role in maintaining humanitarian aid corridors for EU emergency assistance to Syria.

On Gaza, Lahbib underscored the need to maintain the new Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

Lahbib commends Türkiye's approach on Syrian refugees

Earlier in the day, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz also hosted Lahbib, focusing on enhancing Türkiye-EU cooperation. The two discussed regional developments including Gaza, Syria, voluntary returns of Syrians in Türkiye, and combating irregular migration.

Yilmaz stressed the need to update the 1995 Türkiye-EU Customs Union, accelerate visa liberalization, and reactivate high-level dialogue mechanisms.

“Our discussion focused on the ceasefire in Gaza, the situation in Syria and Turkey's flexible approach on returns, which I commended," Lahbib said on X, adding that they also explored ways to strengthen relations including on disaster preparedness,

Last week, she met with Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of Syria's new post-Assad administration, in the capital Damascus. She announced a €235 million aid package for the war-torn country.

Ankara has also pledged to assist Syria's reconstruction and urged international cooperation.​​​​​​​