A meeting on Syria at the level of deputy foreign ministers between Türkiye, Russia, Iran and Syria will be held in Russia's capital on March 15-16, Turkish diplomatic sources said on Monday, APA reports.
The meeting will be attended by Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akcapar, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, their Syrian counterpart Ayman Susan, and Ali Asghar Khaji, a senior adviser to Iran’s foreign minister.
Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that a Turkish delegation will visit Moscow for technical talks ahead of a planned Turkish, Russian, Iranian, and Syrian foreign ministers' meeting.
"The Iranian side will also attend this meeting. At this meeting, preparations for the foreign ministers' meeting will be made," Cavusoglu said at a joint news conference with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian in the capital Ankara.
On Dec. 28, 2022, the Turkish, Russian, and Syrian defense ministers met in Moscow to discuss counterterrorism efforts in Syria and agreed to continue the tripartite meetings to ensure stability in Syria and the wider region.
About the possibility of the inclusion of Iran into the talks, Türkiye previously said Ankara would be "pleased if Iran is involved in this process."
Although no date or location has yet been announced, the foreign ministers' meeting would mark another high-level talk since the Syrian civil war began in 2011.
The diplomatic sources said the deputy foreign ministers will exchange views on which agenda the ministers can meet and which areas of cooperation they can consider.
For Türkiye, the main priority will be to stand up to the separatist groups that threaten Syria's territorial integrity, and to increase cooperation in the fight against terrorism, according to the sources.
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