This week’s talks between the two parties in Moscow were “substantive and frank,” according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
According to a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry, Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Russia have decided to create a plan for mending the strained ties between Ankara and Damascus that have grown worse since the Syrian conflict began.
The declaration was made during talks on Wednesday in Moscow involving the four countries’ senior diplomats, including Mevlut Cavusoglu of Turkey, Faisal Mekdad of Syria, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian of Iran, and Sergey Lavrov of Russia.
During the talks, the foreign ministers “discussed the issues of restoring Syrian-Turkish interstate relations in various aspects in a substantive and frank manner,” the ministry said in a statement.
“The participants also agreed to instruct their deputy foreign ministers to prepare a roadmap for advancing relations between Turkey and Syria in coordination with the defense ministries and special services of the four countries,” it continued.
According to Moscow, all parties reaffirmed their dedication to upholding the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Syria and decided to keep in touch on a bilateral and quadruple basis.
FM in Turkey Among the topics covered in the Russian capital, according to Cavusoglu’s Facebook post, were collaboration in the fight against terrorism, cooperative efforts to create favorable conditions for the return of Syrian refugees, the advancement of the country’s political process, and defense of the territorial integrity of the nation.
The statements made by Moscow and Ankara were corroborated by the Syrian Foreign Ministry. The necessity for more international aid to Syria was also emphasized by the parties, according to Damascus, in order to help the country rebuild after a protracted conflict with international terrorists.
The military ministers of Syria and Turkey met in Moscow in December for the first time in 11 years. In that discussion, Ankara reportedly consented to remove its forces from northern Syria, according to a report from the Syrian newspaper Al-Watan.
Cavusoglu stated last month that Turkish forces are required in Idlib Province, the last region in the nation still under the control of terrorists, “to prevent threats against [Turkey] but also to block efforts to break up Syria.”
Following the start of the Syrian war in 2011, relations between Ankara and Damascus deteriorated, and Turkey joined Western demands for President Bashar Assad’s ouster, which were backed by the Syrian National Army and some other anti-government forces.
With the aid of their Russian and Iranian allies, the Syrian government was able to regain control over the majority of the nation’s territory over the previous few years, defeating terrorist organizations like the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and others. As Ankara began seeking for methods to mend relations with its neighbor, its attitude toward Damascus also changed recently. In order “to establish peace and stability in the region,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared in January that he was willing to meet with Assad if their respective embassies had completed the necessary preparations.
Syria is reinstituted by the Arab League
Syria’s membership in the Arab League was renewed last week after being suspended for more than ten years. It has also consented to resume diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, another significant regional actor.
