Russia, Turkey recognize Iran role in supporting Syria: MFA

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Tehran played a significant role in supporting Syria, its territorial integrity, and the process of political settlement of the Syrian crisis, and these efforts were recognized by Russia and Turkey, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said Monday.

"Iran has always considered the solution to Syria's problems to be political, not military, and now emphasizes the same principled point of view," Kanaani noted.

"Russia, Turkey, and Syria have recognized Iran's decisive role in the fight against terrorism in Syria, support for the government and people, as well as the territorial integrity of Syria and completion of the process of political settlement of the Syrian crisis," he further told a press conference.

Moscow and Ankara have been acting as mediators to the war within various frameworks, such as the mediation group on the Syrian settlement in Astana launched together with Iran in 2017, as well as the Congress of the Syrian national dialogue hosted in the Russian city of Sochi in 2018.

A meeting between the Turkish, Syrian and Russian presidents has been scheduled, but not for January, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in the final days of December.

"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.

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

"On December 28, trilateral talks between the defense ministers of Russia, Syria, and Turkey took place in Moscow. The meeting discussed ways to address the Syrian crisis, the issue of refugees, and joint efforts to combat extremist groups in Syria," the Russian 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.

In the same context, Turkish Defense Minister Akar and the head of the Turkish National Intelligence Organisation (MIT), Hakan Fidan, met Syrian Defense Minister Ali Mahmoud Abbas and Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk in Moscow along with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the Turkish Defense Ministry said.

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.