Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov. Sputnik / Alexey Filippov
The timeframe for a meeting of foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey and Syria is yet to be negotiated, Mikhail Bogdanov, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa, told TASS on February 4.
According to the senior diplomat, Russia is currently holding consultations on the issue with Turkey, Syria as well as Iran. Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov revealed earlier this week that an agreement to involve Iran in the ongoing Turkish-Syrian normalization talks has been reached.
“We are working on the issue of holding a ministerial meeting; we held consultations with delegations from Syria and Iran, and in contact with our Turkish partners through the embassies. This work continues. But there is no timeframe, yet,” Bogdanov told TASS.
The diplomat went on to confirm that Russia, Turkey and Syria will hold what he called “expert consultations” before this month. This was first revealed by Turkish defense minister Hulusi Akar just a few days earlier.
Ankara cut all ties with Damascus after the outbreak of the war in Syria, more than a decade ago. Today, it is the main backer of rebels and its military occupies vast parts of the country.
In December, the Turkish-Syrian normalization talks saw a breakthrough when the defense ministers and intelligence chiefs of the two countries met in Moscow.
The highly-anticipated foreign ministers meeting will be even more important as it could help set the ground for a summit between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Syrian counterpart, Bashar al-Assad.
Ankara’s hopes that normalizing relations with Damascus could help solve its refugee problem and address the threat posed by Kurdish forces in northern and eastern Syria. From its side, Damascus is looking for a Turkish military withdrawal from Syrian territory.
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