Is provided by the following additional funding provided by and by bloomberg, a provider of multimedia news and Information Services worldwide. From our studios in new york city, this is captioning sponsored by Rose Communications from our studios in new york city, this is charlie rose. Rose the United NationGeneral Assembly brings many heads of state to new york. We begin a series of conversations this week with the president of turkey, ray accept day yep erdogan. The rise of isis brings turkey into renewed focus this weekend, 46 turkish diplomats were released from isis cappivity captivity in a recognize, they had been held for 100 days, turkey says no ransom is was paid, an ongoing isis assault in Northern Syria adding to the 1. 3 million refugees in turkey. Over 130,000 syrian kurds have entered turkey in the past three days. Turkey is already part of u. S. Led nato coalition against isis but so far it has made no military commitment. I spoke to president erdogan earlier today at his hotel. Here is our conversation. Mr. President , thank you for joining us. Thank you. Your hostages have been released. You can tell me if you had to give up anything, make any promises to isis to get them home . Well, first of all, the fact that our hostages have been brought home has been a very Important Development for our country. Its the end of a very important issue for us. And our National Intelligence service worked very hard as their ability to conduct this operation was very important. And i have to say very clearly that these hostages were kept in captivity for 102 days. And there is really been a very successful intelligence effort here to get them released. And there is a we might call this a diplomatic operation, a political operation, so all these aspects have been very important in securing the release of these 49 hostages. There are many speculations. But i can say very clearly there there has been no issue of paying any ransom. So there is no money paid. Everybody should know that. This is completely as i said, a diplomatic, political discussion. The result is a result of political diplomatic negotiations. And it does not include any concessions visavis our country and our government. So isis got nothing in return for releasing the hostages. Well, isis is playing playing for a number of things in the region. Perhaps they do not want to increase the number of enemies that they have because turkey would have remained patient only up to a certain point. And other steps would have had to be taken. As you know, there was a meeting which the United States participated in and other countries participated in this as well, and our foreign minister was there in that Coalition Building effort. And after those meetings, mr. Kerry came to anchora an i told him when he came to visit me that we would be part of a humanitarian effort. But because we had the 49 hostages, we would not be in a position to take other steps. And we have actually taken significant steps in terms of humanitarian support. For example, we have, were hosting about 60,000 yiz idies, they have arrived in turkey in a very short period of time. So we are hosting about 60,000 yizidies, and they are staying in our School Buildings, our tents. As of this morning, 120 125,000 syrian kurds are in turkey. They are being hosted in turkey. And we have at the moment a total of about 1. 5 million refugees in turkey. So we are hosting these 1. 5 Million People. But as we do that, the rest of the world is hosting 120 130,000, so there is a big difference. And we have invested so far 3. 5 billion dollars in this effort. There are also wounded people coming there palestine, gaz az and about 130 of them have arrived in turkey so far. Some have been treated already, others are in the process of being treated. So turkey is fulfilling this humanitarian effort. Describe for me the continues in the refugee camps, so that the world understands what the challenge it is for you. I think i should say there are four types of refugee camps that we have at the moment. We have some tent camps which we had to set up very quickly, urgently. Then we set up some container cities, container cities were set up. But then there are also others who have their own financial needs who could be settled in some of the cities. And fourthly, we have opened up our school, School Buildings to house these refugees. Do they in some cases, if they are syrian kurds represent a Security Threat to turkey . Well, the Security Threat wouldnt come from syrian kurds of all the people who are arriving there are many who are there who need the helpment but there are some who may pose a threat. And we of course have to take necessary measures. And its something that we really have to be very careful about. But our National Intelligence agency, our Security Forces are all looking into this. And we tell our friends, that its very important to set up a nofly zone on the syrian side. If we can declare such an area and support that zone, then we can establish a safe there whereby help would be provided to that region and this would remove any Security Threat. In 1991, we had opened our doors to kurds then. And at that time, there were about one million kurds who had crossed over to turkey and we provided them food, shelter. And they were escaping from the persecution of saddal. And then they went back to Northern Iraq. A similar thing is happening now both in iraq and in syria. And we have opened our doors. We keep an opendoor policy in place. But well see how far this can go. Thats the question mark, of course. But the pkk has been in opposition and fighting against isis. Well, this is not an issue for the pkk, the pyd left the area. The pyd and the pkk are the same. As you know, when the pyd left that area, isis came in and they started chasing all the kurds there. And about 20 to 30 villages are as a result occupied by isis. So this is the situation. This is similar to what happened in moss all. And its happen mosul and its happening now in the kob annie area. And the villages around kobane are being visited by isis and the kurds living around those villages are fleeing to turkey and they are now housed in turkey. Rose my understanding is you want a nofly zone that is away from the border which will pull those people away from the border because they will seek the safety of a nofly zone. Yes. Reasons thats correct. The moment theres a nofly zone, if that is declared, then there would be a safe zone in that area. And other humanitarian needs for that safe zone would be provided logistical support, could be provided to that region and these people could then settle in that area and live in that area for the time being. Another question about the border is that some people believe and argue and say it is a fact that many of the people who are joining isis in syria and then in iraq are coming through turkey. That you need to do a better job of closing your borders to those radicals who want to come and fight for isis. These are not sincere. This was something we discussed at the nato summit. And when we discussed this at the nato summit france, italy, the u. K. , they talked about people who were from their countries who were going to this region. They are leaving those countries as tourists. They dont leave countries with weapons at hand. In turkey we have so far identified about 6,000 of them. Some they come from Different Countries including our country. We have detained some of them. We have deported some of them. So we have been working on this. There are some whose entry into turkey is banned. And they come into turkey and turkey has is very keen on this. Theyre coming through turkey going to syria. Well, the entry issue, if you look at syria and iraq. If you look at our border, we have a border about 1200 kilometers including the border with syria and the border with iraq. So were looking at a very long border where you have the customs entry and exit points and the rest of the border. And its not possible to control every single segment of it. But if we say that thousands of people are going through, it would be very unfair to turkey, this is not the case. Rose now that the hostages are home and safe, what is the commitment of turkey to the fight against isis . What are you prepared to do . As you know turkey had a big struggle against al qaeda. And our struggle against isis will continue to be the case. We are very firm in this. And i can tell you very clearly that turkeys view with regard to terrorist organizations in the region is one and the same. And we make no concessions on that point of view. Because for 32 years weve been fighting against pkk terrorism in our own country. So we know what the consequences are. About 40,000 people lost their lives as a result of the struggle. The economic consequences also have been huge. Isis is not a terrorist organization that emerged today. It was in iraq but then it went to syria. It, the conducive environment provided it with a room for development and then it started growing. And so all countries that are sensitive to terrorism ought to have responsibility in countering this threat. Okay. That is my question. What is your responsibility and what are you prepared to do . To help the battle, train troops, would you do that . Would you train the Free Syrian Army so that they can engage isis in syria . Whatever is required in this effort, needs to be done. And turkey will do whatever it needs to do based on its own experience. And we have been sending out warnings for a long time. In syria we had sounded that alarm a long time ago. But whereas the u. S. In syria as i said at the nato summit, the issue is not only iraq. Its iraq and syria. And so its important to take the two together. Air strikes, if you only consider air strikes, this means that you are not fully involved in this struggle because air strikes is only one dimension. There would be things that would need to be done by the air, on the ground, from intelligence perspective, from a humanitarian perspective. So these all have to be taken into consideration. And we have to look at this as a whole. And if we do not have this kind of a comprehensive approach, then the job will be half done. Because you bumble a praise and that is where you leave it. What about the social ramifications, what about the political ramifications. So all of these factors have to be taken into consideration. But clearly you know the United States does not want to be seen as sending its troops to fight again muslims in the middle east. They would like to provide the support that they can, to stop isis and they prepared to use some advisors and certainly air power. But they need Ground Troops to come from the region. Where are they going to come from . Can you take the Free Syrian Army and make it into a fighting force that with air power can stop isis . Well, fighting against terrorism is not a regional issue. Its an international issue. And since it is an international issue, we have to consider an international approach. Why then would a meeting be held in jeta or why did this process begin in iraq 12 years ago. And why was the situation with syria considered in the way that it was considered. We have to discuss these on an International Level and there has to be if these terrorist actions are taking place in this location today, its very possible that they would happen in other countries tomorrow. It could be in the u. S. , in france, in germany, in the u. S. , as has happened with the twin towers so it can happen anywhere. Rose but mr. President , you know that they are gaining, they are taking ground in syria and iraq. They occupy and they took the city of mosul and took hostages, turkish hostages. They have to be stopped there now. And you need an effort that involves a coalition. And the United States an others are saying where is turkey. Well, these are not things you would say in the way that you want me to say them on a Television Program like this. Our different units have discussions with their american counterparts. Theyre having those discussions. And based on the outcome of those discussions, there are certain phases in which we would be involved. We are not a country that is outside the region. We are in the region. The fire is burning in our region. 1. 5 million refugees are not in the u. S. Or in germany or in france, theyre in my country so im already there. And we are, our country is hosting those people and defending them. Were saving those people from those bombs and those he events across the border. So. Planes, the bombs, this is all very they are bombing in one area. Isis in the meanwhile is still moving forward with the tanks and the artillery that they have. Where did those tanks and artillery come from . I think we have to really assess the situation fully. Those tanks and artillery are weapons that the u. S. Had provided to the army in the past. Isis and what did isis do with them . They began this occupation effort in the region. So we have to contemplate all the steps that we would need to take in the region. And depending on that outlook, we would do what we have to do. The u. S. Would do what it has to do. All the countries in the region ought to be doing what they have to do. And people like malickee were mar all maliki were for years kept there. What happened now, maliki will become Vice President again. And we keep saying that this person should not be taking such responsibilities. Rose but dont you believe the new government is more inclusive of sunni muslims than maliki was and that the progress, because the United States made clear that it would not be engaged unless there was a change in the baghdad government. It is not possible to accept that the sunnis have a more influential position in the new government. Because its the shiite who have the dominant position. Still. But the uncertainty that was there is no longer there because there iraq did not have a president ment now it has a president. The speaker of the parliament has been determined. And the Prime Minister is now someone else, atly the iraqi people are free of maliki. We have a border of 320 kilometers with iraq and we hope that our relations with iraq will be healthier or better. In iraq we have with the administration in Northern Iraq with the shia, with at rab, with the sunnis, we have connections on contacts with all of these groups. So we do not have any negative relations with any one of these groups. Were in touch with maliki as well. But malikis approach was different. He did not establish a National Army in iraq. He established a shiite army. And about 95, 98 of the army was made up of the shiite, that cannot be a National Army. And that lead to internal clashes. And it lead to many problems in iraq. I hope now that this government in iraq is aware of all these factors. And they will move swiftly in establishing a National Army as they have worked to establish this government. But as you said the biggest problem is not iraq, it is syria. As i said to president obama, one cannot only look at iraq. That would be wrong. Iraq and syria both have to be taken into consideration in determining what to do with the region. And on that wednesday, that speech he made on that wednesday, president obama did res the situation in both of those countries, in iraq and syria. And i think this was a correct observation, correct assessment. And we, i think that we have to do whatever is necessary based on this overall assessment. And i said this to secretary hagel and also to secretary kerry. So if we take that kind of an approach i think we will be more successful. How do you assess what the americans have done so far . Positive, negative . More recently, if were talking about the most recent steps in iraq theyre positive. Delayed but positive. It would have been better if the president had decided to support the Free Syrian Army two years ago, notwithstanding his worry that weapons would fall into the hands of groups like alnusra or isis . Well, i should say, that two years, its not even two years. Its three years ago. Things should have been dealt with three years ago in syria. And same with iraq. There it should have been even longer than three years ago. Because malikis approach was unfortunately never positive. And maliki kept putting a lot of pressure on his people. And i said this to president obama and when i was Prime Minister, i also talked to mr. Biden about this. And we did tell them about this situation in the region. And unfortunately the necessary steps were not taken to deal with it. And its if this new government can take these steps then i hope that we can achieve a more swift result and those 1. 5 Million People in our country are able to go back home. Do you think that your effort to overthrow and see assad leads ahead of government in syria lead you to overlook the threat of the radical jihadist in syria . You were so intent on seeing assad overthrown that perhaps your support went to the wrong groups. All of the well, let me say very clearly that regarding these terrorist organizations, in that area, we have to think of how they happened, how they came about, these terrorist organizations. Were there terrorist organizations when assad was there or was isis there, when al qaeda, was it there. I was Prime Minister for 11 years and i kept going to syria. I visited syria very regularly and these terrorist organizations did not exist in syria at the time. And the problem, the issues, always came back to assad himself. Because i kept telling him then that he should move more quickly towards democracy. That he should not be afraid of allowing Political Parties to be established that it