Syria Peace Discussed by Foreign Minister of Iran, Russia and Turkey

By Staff, Agencies

The foreign ministers of Iran, Russia and Turkey – the three guarantor countries of the Astana format- held a trilateral meeting via video conference to discuss Syria peace efforts.

The top diplomats of the three guarantors of the Astana peace process held the trilateral meeting via tele-conference on Wednesday, April 22.

In the meeting, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Sergei Lavrov and Mevlut Cavusoglu talked about the latest developments, including the most recent situation in Idlib, Syria’s Constitutional Committee, the necessity for the removal of the unilateral sanctions, particularly given the outbreak of the coronavirus, humanitarian conditions, and return of the displaced persons.

The ministers emphasized the need to continue holding consultations and coordination at the highest level among the three guarantors of the Astana format as the most important and effective process for the settlement of the crisis in Syria.

They also agreed on the need to respect Syria’s independence, national sovereignty and territorial integrity, resolve the Syrian crisis politically, delineate between the terrorists and the opposition, and keep up the fight against terrorism.

Zarif, who has recently paid a visit to Syria to discuss the latest developments and hold consultations with the Syrian President and counterpart Walid al-Muallem, touched on the recent developments in Idlib during the trilateral meeting, and stressed the need for respecting Syria’s territorial integrity and for the continued fight against terrorism.

Pointing to his recent consultations with the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Syria Geir O. Pedersen, Zarif voiced support for his efforts to facilitate the Syrian-Syrian dialogue within the framework of the Constitutional Committee, and stressed the need for protecting the Committee’s independence and preventing foreign interference in the process of its activities.

He also pointed to the far-reaching impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, slammed the unilateral sanctions as a serious obstacle to the battle with the virus, and reminded the international community and the United Nations of their responsibility to lift the sanctions, alleviate the suffering of Syrian people, and pay special attention to the status of the displaced persons at the refugee camps occupied by the US.

The meeting, in general, emphasized the necessity of proceeding with trilateral consultations at all levels, including by holding the sixth Summit of Astana Process in the Islamic Republic of Iran after the normalization of situation created by the coronavirus outbreak.