President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Syrian Kurds to "complete their integration" with Syria's new government after the announcement of a comprehensive ceasefire, in a transcript shared by his office Wednesday.
"The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) must keep their word. They must complete their integration with Syria," Erdogan told Turkish journalists late Tuesday on board a plane returning from Azerbaijan.
Syria announced a comprehensive ceasefire with Kurdish forces after a meeting on Tuesday between Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi that followed deadly clashes in the northern city of Aleppo.
In a statement on X on Tuesday, Syrian Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra said he had met in Damascus with Abdi, head of the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
"We agreed on a comprehensive ceasefire on all fronts, and on points for military deployment in north and northeast Syria," Qasra said, adding that implementation of the deal would begin immediately.
A government source told AFP the meeting came after Sharaa met with Abdi, the first such encounter since July, and that the pair had discussed "security issues concerning the March 10 agreement".
The Kurdish leader said they had discussed "issues aimed at supporting the political integration in Syria, preserving the country's territorial integrity, and creating a safe environment for all components of the Syrian people", as well as ensuring continued efforts to combat Islamic State group militants in the region
Syria's authorities, who took power last year after overthrowing Bashar al-Assad, have rejected Kurdish demands for a decentralised government.
The issue has added to tensions with the Kurdish administration that controls swathes of the north and northeast, while differences between the two sides have held up implementation of the 10 March deal on integrating the Kurds' civil and military institutions into the state.
Erdogan said: "Syria's territorial integrity is non-negotiable for us. We cannot accept any stance against this."
His government has supported Syria's new rulers led by Sharaa.
Between 2016 and 2019, Turkey launched three offensives in northern Syria against Syrian Kurdish fighters, who form the backbone of the SDF, and against the Islamic State (IS) group.