Iran hopes that by hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, it will receive backing from Russia and Turkey, and that Tehran can be a key broker to what is happening in Syria. The Iranian media reports on Monday night indicated the basic agenda of the meetings, as Turkey’s leader arrived in Iran.
Iran’s foreign minister has said this important meeting would examine issues relating to Syria. Syria is therefore the first priority for Iran at the moment. Iran uses Syria as a place to entrench its forces and threaten Israel and US forces. In a conversation on the eve of the meeting of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Putin and Erdogan, Iran’s Fars News Agency said the meeting would seek to reduce any tensions in Syria.
“The Turkish side is talking about the possibility of a military operation up to 30 kilometers from the Syrian border, and we tried to resolve this crisis and Turkey's security concerns from the political path."
Iran's Foreign Ministry
The issue of tensions is important because Russia is distracted by the Ukraine war. Turkey is demanding a new invasion of part of Syria. Meanwhile, Russia could draw down its forces, which could destabilize the Syrian regime by enabling Iran to grow its influence.
Reports say Syria’s foreign minister may also visit Iran in the coming days. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it wants to prevent a new Turkish military operation and a new security crisis in Syria.
“The Turkish side is talking about the possibility of a military operation up to 30 kilometers from the Syrian border, and we tried to resolve this crisis and Turkey’s security concerns from the political path,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said, according to the report.
“Of course, in this sensitive situation, one of the issues on the agenda is that instead of resorting to war and further displacement of a new wave of Syrian people, we can help solve this issue through political means. The foreign minister stated that the return of Syrian refugees to their homes and cities, helping peace, stability and security in Syria are among the issues that are on the agenda of this tripartite meeting.”
This is the seventh meeting of the three presidents.
This is the seventh meeting of the three presidents. Iran has a new president, but Putin and Erdogan have guided their countries during the 11 years of the Syrian civil war. Russia, Iran and Turkey oppose the US role in Syria.
“In this regard, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is coming to Tehran this evening to participate in this meeting and make a bilateral trip, and Vladimir Putin is going to visit Tehran tomorrow,” Fars reported.
That means the Turkish leader’s trip is of utmost importance, at least in terms of the time spent in Iran. Putin’s trip is also historic because of the Ukrainian war and reports that Russia is seeking drone sales. If Syria’s foreign minister also comes, this will make for a series of key meetings regarding the future of Syria.
Meanwhile, Turkish media reports said Turkey could still try to freeze the ascension of Finland and Sweden to NATO. This illustrates that Turkey’s real interests are working with Russia and Iran, and that one of the goals of Ankara is opposing two democracies joining NATO.
“Tehran is preparing the necessary documents to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, said Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali,” Russian News Agency TASS reported. This forms part of the backdrop of the meetings in Iran.
“The process of obtaining full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization consists of numerous stages that a candidate country needs to implement within the established time frame,” Jalali was quoted as saying. “According to the schedule, Iran is preparing documents, passing through these stages and notifying the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on a regular basis.”