STORY: Anti-Syrian riots in Türkiye underscore urgency of refugee issue: analyst
SHOOTING TIME: Archives
DATELINE: July 9, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:10
LOCATION: Ankara
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of rioters setting fire to houses, businesses and vandalized vehicles belonging to Syrians in the central city of Kayseri, Türkiye (July 2, 2024)
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): BATU COSKUN, Political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute
3. various of Syrian refugees at the Türkiye-Syria border (Aug. 24, 2022)
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): BATU COSKUN, Political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute

STORYLINE:

Batu Coskun, a political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute, said in a recent interview with Xinhua that recent anti-Syrian riots in Turkish cities have underscored the urgency of the refugee issue.

While Türkiye has been praised for hosting millions of Syrian refugees, social and economic tensions have deteriorated public sentiment in recent years.

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): BATU COSKUN, Political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute
"The (Turkish) government is likely calculating that anti-migrant sentiments have grown exponentially and are now causing mass societal tension. So the government is seeing an urgency, at least symbolically, perhaps to come to an arrangement where Syrians are promised to return. It is unlikely that this will happen rather fast because of the sheer number. The government is likely aiming for a symbolic deal which will appease local and domestic tensions."

Coskun highlighted the Ankara government's urgency in reaching an arrangement for the return of Syrian refugees, though he noted that normalization will likely be a difficult path.

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): BATU COSKUN, Political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute
"A detente between Türkiye and Syria may lead to an agreement overseeing the mass repatriation of Syrian citizens residing in Türkiye back to Syria. This is only viable through such negotiations."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced at the end of June that there is no obstacle preventing Türkiye and Syria from restoring diplomatic ties, which were severed after the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011.
   
His comments mirrored those of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad days earlier, suggesting a potential thaw in relations between the neighboring countries.
   
"There is no reason why (diplomatic ties) should not be established," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul on June 28. 
   
High-level talks between Ankara and Damascus, held under Russia's auspices in late 2022, failed to achieve concrete results. However, rising public pressure in Türkiye to return some 3.1 million Syrian refugees has renewed Ankara's efforts for reconciliation.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Ankara.
(XHTV)