Erdogan suggests including Iran in planned talks with Russia, Syria
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggests that Iran join the tripartite talks to "let there be peace in the region."
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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses lawmakers of his AK Party during a meeting at the parliament in Ankara on January 18. (Reuters)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Iran could join the planned talks between Turkey, Russia and Syria at the highest level.
He added on Sunday, at a youth meeting in the Turkish city of Bilecik, that the countries should unite in a trio. "Let Iran also join, let's conduct our talks this way, and let there be peace in the region."
In December, a trilateral summit of defense and intelligence chiefs of Russia, Turkey and Syria in Moscow marked the first meeting between Turkish and Syrian defense ministers in 11 years.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Erdogan gave their positive assessment to the December talks in a phone call earlier in January.
Putin and his Turkish counterpart discussed on January 16 the normalization of Turkish-Syrian relations in the context of Ankara's initiative to launch consultations, with the participation of Russian, Turkish and Syrian representatives.
They discussed rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus, according to the Kremlin.
"Issues of normalization of Turkish-Syrian relations were discussed, including in the context of Ankara's initiative to launch consultations with the participation of Russian, Turkish, and Syrian representatives," the statement read.
"The practical significance of the joint work of Russia, Turkey, and Iran within the framework of the Astana process of promoting the Syrian settlement was also noted," it added.
