The defense ministers of Iran, Syria, and Turkey met in Moscow on April 25 at a gathering hosted by their Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu.
The four-party talks also were attended by the intelligence chiefs of all four countries.
Hailed by all sides as “constructive,” the closed-door meetings tackled a range of issues, including the need to combat “extremist” groups operating in Syria and the repatriation of displaced Syrian refugees.
Participants also discussed the prospects for diplomatic reconciliation between Turkey and Syria after more than a decade of mutual hostility.
“The sides discussed practical steps in the areas of strengthening security in Syria and normalizing Syrian–Turkish relations,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
According to a statement released by the Syrian Defense Ministry, participants also discussed the implementation of an agreement to reopen Syria’s M4 motorway. Running parallel to the Turkish border, the international highway is a key transit route linking northern Syria to destinations in Turkey, Iraq, and Jordan.
Turkey-Syria Rapprochement
Diplomatic reconciliation between Turkey and Syria, which Russian officials have described as a “strategic objective,” topped the agenda of the talks.A longstanding member of the Western NATO alliance, Turkey severed ties with Damascus in 2011 as the conflict in Syria became increasingly violent. Since then, Ankara has supported armed groups in Syria devoted to the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad and his government.
Turkey also maintains a sizeable military presence in northern Syria, with the stated aim of protecting its southern border from Kurdish militant groups.
Since 2016, Turkey has carried out three major ground offensives into northern Syria, where it still maintains thousands of troops.
“The only reason we are in Syria is to fight terrorists, especially the [Kurdish] PKK/YPG and ISIS,” Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told reporters after the meeting in Moscow.
“We will continue our efforts to neutralize terrorist groups,” he added, “which is vital not just for us but for Syria’s territorial integrity.”
Unlike Turkey, Russia has remained a staunch supporter of Damascus and has maintained forces in Syria—at Assad’s invitation—since 2015.
Despite ongoing differences over Syria, Turkey maintains good relations with Russia, with which it shares extensive trade ties and a lengthy maritime border.
Damascus, however, has repeatedly conditioned reconciliation with Ankara on the withdrawal of all Turkish forces from Syrian territory.
In January, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said that any restoration of ties was contingent upon Turkey ending its “occupation” in northern Syria.
“It’s impossible to talk about normalized relations with Turkey while it is occupying northern areas of Syria,” he said.
Foreign Ministers’ Meeting Slated for May
Moscow kicked off the Turkey–Syria reconciliation process last December by hosting a landmark meeting between Akar and his Syrian counterpart, Ali Mahmoud Abbas.It was the first public meeting between high-ranking Turkish and Syrian officials in more than a decade.
The event is meant to be followed by a meeting between the two countries’ foreign ministers, followed, in turn, by an eventual meeting between Assad and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Last month, it was decided that Iran—which, like Russia, supports Damascus—would also attend the upcoming ministerial talks in Moscow.
During a visit to Ankara, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian voiced his country’s desire to see “a thaw in relations” between Syria and Turkey.
Soon afterward, however, Assad said he would only consent to a meeting with Erdogan once Turkey withdrew all its troops from northern Syria.
“Such a meeting can only take place when Turkey is ready—fully and without reservation—to completely withdraw from Syrian territory,” he said.
Following the meeting in Moscow, the Turkish Defense Ministry made no mention of a planned Turkish withdrawal from Syria.
Nevertheless, Moscow plans to host another round of “four-party talks” early next month—this time at the foreign ministers’ level—suggesting that the Turkey–Syria reconciliation process remains on track.
On April 26, Iranian Defense Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani said Tehran hoped to facilitate a “direct Syria–Turkey dialogue” and “encourages cooperation between them.”
The shared goal of eradicating terrorist groups, he added, “cannot be realized except through joint efforts and coordination between states of the region.”
Washington, meanwhile, has remained firmly opposed to reconciliation—by anyone—with Assad, describing him as a “brutal dictator.”
The U.S. State Department didn’t respond by press time to a request by The Epoch Times for comment on the four-party talks in Moscow.
