Turkish AKP MP: Next talks with Syria in 2023, Iran seat reserved

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A Turkish member of parliament from the Turkish Justice and Development Party (AKP) stated to Sputnik on Thursday that the Syrian and Turkish ministers are expected to hold the next round of talks in Ankara and Damascus in the upcoming year.

The Turkish Justice and Development Party is the ruling party in Turkey and is led by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"It is definitely reasonable to think that contacts between Turkey and Syria will continue in 2023. The second meeting may be held in Ankara, the next one in Damascus," Orhan Miroglu said, noting that the meetings will break down some barriers between the two countries.

Read more: Turkey respects Syria's territorial integrity: Akar

Miroglu added that Iran, "will be given a seat at the table," however so far it is not yet clear whether the Islamic Republic will agree.

Earlier today, Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that a  meeting between the Turkish, Syrian and Russian presidents has been scheduled, but not for January.

"As for the summit of the leaders of the three countries, again there is no date, but January is too early for that, so we cannot say that the summit will take place in January," the minister said, as quoted by TRT broadcaster.

On December 15, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he had offered to Russian President Vladimir Putin to hold a meeting between the three leaders, which will be preceded by a meeting of the heads of the intelligence services, defense, and foreign ministries.

On December 28, the Russian, Syrian, and Turkish defense ministers held talks in the Russian capital, Moscow, to discuss means of resolving the Syrian crisis, the former's defense ministry said.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the defense ministers highlighted how the dialogue was constructive, stressing the need for all three parties to hold further talks to bring more stability to Syria and the whole region, the statement added.

It is worth noting that on Christmas, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said his country was in talks with Russia to use Syria's airspace to conduct a cross-border operation against the US-backed Kurdish YPG militia in northeastern Syria.

The United States has been arming Kurdish groups in northeastern Syria, making grounds for oil and gas theft.

Last month, Turkey ramped up its military preparations after an explosion in Istanbul, which Kurdish militants were held accountable for, though denied involvement. Ankara then launched strikes against what it claimed to be YPG targets, and the president gave the possibility of a coming-ground offensive. 

The Turkish President also said his country is committed to destroying the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) "until its last militant is neutralized" and raised the possibility of conducting a ground operation soon.