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Turkey's Syria Stalemate Continues

Turkey’s announcement that “joint efforts will continue with Russia" over Syria masks unresolved differences in approach, writes Cengiz Çandar.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) speaks with Syrian National Coalition President Mouaz al-Khatib, next to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, and Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, during meetings at Villa Madama in Rome February 28, 2013. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (ITALY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EDX6

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, in Istanbul on April 17, but on the same day also took advantage of a photo opportunity with Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, president of the National Coalition of Opposition and Revolutionary Forces of Syria. Only a tiny segment of the Turkish media noticed the significance of these meetings. Although the meeting with Lavrov was covered by the media, television coverage of Davutoglu meeting al-Khatib was but a minor news item that one saw only by chance.

The Syrian issue is now at the center of intensive diplomatic traffic in Istanbul. Lavrov made a quick visit to there and, as discerned from his statements, departed without agreeing with Turkey on the Syria issue. In other words, the two neighboring countries agreed to disagree.

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