MHP's Sandir: "Turkey's ties with Syria go beyond fellowship"

Ties between Turkey and Syria, countries once rocked by regional disputes, now transcend those of mere fellowship, said Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Deputy Chairman Mehmet Sandir. Sandir, who also co-chairs the Turkish-Syrian Interparliamentary Friendship Group along with Syrian Deputy Ismet Mahli, said these relations will also "significantly" contribute to peace and prosperity in the Middle East. Sandir and a number of other Turkish lawmakers welcomed their Syrian counterparts from the group last week in Istanbul, Bursa, and Ankara. "For four centuries, the people of the two countries lived as citizens" together in the Ottoman Empire, he said. Turkey and Syria reciprocally lifted visa requirements in September 2009 in one of the strongest signs of growing relations between the two countries. As a result, last year some 2 million Turkish citizens visited Syria and around 1 million Syrians came to Turkey for tourist and commercial purposes.