ISTANBUL — Turkey is ready to hold talks with the Taliban if necessary, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday.

“If there is a knock on our door, we will open it for dialogue,” Erdogan told reporters after Friday prayers in Istanbul.

He criticized the Western world and Islamic states for “their lack of interest and car for Afghanistan over the past two decades.”

Turkey has been putting the necessary effort for Afghanistan’s development and will continue to do so, the president asserted.

On the wave of migration from Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover, Erdogan said Turkey is also hosting some 300,000 undocumented Afghan migrants.

The Turkey’s president announced that his country greets the adequate declarations made by Taliban leaders.

During a mutual TV interview broadcast live on Kanal 7, Ulke TV, 24 TV, TVNET and TV 360, Erdogan stated, "Turkey is ready for all kinds of cooperation for peace in Afghanistan, the well-being of our kin in the country and the protection of Turkey’s interests."

Erdogan added that the country’s armed presence in Afghanistan is going to support the new Kabul government's hand in the global arena.

He also declared “No matter who is in the administration, standing with Afghanistan in good and bad times is the requirement of brotherhood." — Agencies