ANKARA, November 13. /TASS/. Turkey has extended its hand for the normalization of relations with Syria and believes that this gesture will contribute to peace in the neighboring country, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, adding he hoped for a personal meeting with his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad.

"We have extended our hand to the Syrian side to normalize relations. We do believe this will open the door to peace and tranquility in Syria," Erdogan told the media upon his return from Baku, where he attended the UN climate convention meeting (COP-29) on November 12.

"I still pin hopes on Assad. I also have hope that we can come together and bring relations between Syria and Turkey back to normal. Because we need to destroy the terrorist organizations between Syria and Turkey. There is a basis for a just and lasting peace in Syria. The steps that need to be taken to ensure it are also obvious," the Anadolu news agency quotes Erdogan as saying.

"We are not the ones who threaten Syria's territorial integrity. Syria's territorial integrity is threatened by terrorists, especially the terrorist organization the Kurdistan Workers' Party [PKK, banned in Turkey]. Syria's territorial integrity is not threatened by Syrians scattered in many countries. Assad should realize this and take steps to create a new climate in his country and to protect his country," Erdogan said, adding that the threat to Syria from Israel "is not a fantasy."