The United States Acting Under Secretary for Political Affairs John Bass concluded a visit to Ankara, Turkey, where he met with senior Turkish government officials to discuss the ongoing situation in Syria, Gaza, and across the Middle East.

 

In a press conference on Friday evening, Bass said the visit came under a “Syria working group” they established with Turkey last year.

 

The visit by US diplomats came to discuss the latest development in Syria after the fall of the Bashar Al-Assad regime on December 8, 2024, and in order to support a "responsible transition” for the current Syrian administration.

 

Ankara and Washington discussed concrete steps that should be taken in this period by the new Syrian administration to ensure the current situation does not result in the resurgence of Daesh or any other foreign terrorist organization to ensure it does not create any threats for Syria or its neighbours.

 

The meetings also discussed ways to provide further provision under the current sanctions imposed on Syria for the current Syrian government to address the immediate needs of its people, which included support from other governments for salary payments to ensure proper civil administration.

 

Other donations included power and energy and other measures that were “required to stabilize the Syrian government and stabilize the economy,” according to Bass.

 

He added that during this transitional period, the United States has authorized some economical activities and private financial transactions between Syrians outside the country and inside the country so people who have been displaced by the 13–year-long conflict can support family members or relatives who are still inside the country.

 

Regarding American military presence inside Syria, Bass said that it is for a “very specific purpose”, and that is to ensure Daesh does not recover and return to terrorist activities seeking advantage from this transitional period.