Will main opposition leader Ozel visit Syria?

Striking claims have emerged regarding the failure of the planned July visit to Damascus by the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Ozgur Ozel.

According to the allegations, CHP’s efforts to establish contact with Damascus were unsuccessful. Syrian sources indicate that Syrian President Bashar Assad considers Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the appropriate counterpart in the normalization process with Türkiye, rather than the opposition leader.

Following the May summit between Erdogan and Ozel, the normalization between Türkiye and Syria came to the forefront. Ozel had announced during a television program on July 3 that he would visit Damascus and meet with Assad.

It was also suggested that during the normalization process between the ruling AK Party and CHP, the CHP might mediate the Türkiye-Syria normalization.

Ozel was reportedly expected to mediate discussions between Erdogan and Assad on various issues, including Türkiye-Syria normalization, cooperation in combating the PKK/YPG, and facilitating the return of Syrian refugees.

However, the visit scheduled for July did not take place. During the same period, mutual statements from Erdogan and Assad regarding normalization are alleged to have hindered Ozel’s visit.

Sources close to the Syrian regime suggest that Assad prefers to meet directly with Erdogan through mediation by Russia, Iran, or Iraq.

It is claimed that Assad believes that meeting with Ozel would give Ozel political leverage within Türkiye, but Assad considers Erdogan as his counterpart on an official level.

No new statements from CHP regarding Ozel’s Damascus visit have been made, and the issue seems to be fading from the agenda. However, Syrian sources state that such a meeting did not occur because the Syrian regime did not want it.