"We have already expressed our willingness to meet with Bashar Assad to normalize relations between Turkey and Syria," Erdogan told a press conference ahead of his flight to the United States for the UN General Assembly.

"We are waiting for the Syrian side to answer. We are ready for it… I believe that we will turn over a new leaf in our relations at this meeting," Erdogan added, Sputnik reported.

Meanwhile Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has stated that a "frozen war" has been ongoing between Turkey and Syria since 2017. 

Fidan, in an interview with Turkish media, explained that this "frozen war" began with the Astana process and the agreement between Turkey and Russia in 2017. 

He highlighted that Turkey is ready for a meeting between President Erdogan and Syrian President Assad, with indirect exchanges and ongoing negotiations at the intelligence and military levels between Ankara and Damascus. 

Fidan emphasized that the situation between Turkey and Syria has been calm since the 2017 agreement and there has been no active fighting. 

A frozen conflict, also known as a frozen war, is a situation in international relations where active armed conflict has ended, but there is no peace treaty or political framework to resolve the conflict. 

This means the conflict could resume at any moment, creating a dangerous and unstable environment.