UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed support for Turkey’s ground operation against terrorist Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria at a private meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the sidelines of G-20 Summit in China on Saturday.
Ban “emphasized the key role of Turkey in the fight against Daesh”, an Arabic acronym for ISIL, a UN statement said on its website.
Two leaders discussed the latest situation in Aleppo and other aspects of the Syrian conflict. They also “discussed the status of negotiations for a political solution to the Syrian conflict and a recent UN-sponsored report on chemical weapons attacks in the war-torn country,” the Anadolu news agency reported.
Ban expressed support for the Turkish democracy after last month’s failed coup attempt. The UN chief was “inspired by the strong commitment demonstrated by the Turkish people after these events, and stressed the importance to harness this energy and solidarity to build an even more solid foundation for future development and good governance in the country”, the UN statement said.