Turkey, Russia and Iran should take steps at their next trilateral summit to preserve a delicate balance of powers in Syria's Idlib, the Turkish parliamentary speaker told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd July, 2019) Turkey, Russia and Iran should take steps at their next trilateral summit to preserve a delicate balance of powers in Syria's Idlib, the Turkish parliamentary speaker told Sputnik.
Russia, Turkey and Iran - the Astana trio - are the guarantors of the ceasefire in Syria which has been ravaged by an eight-year-long conflict. The Astana talks have been an important part of international efforts, paving a way to settle the conflict in Syria.
"There is a very critical balance there [in Idlib]. We don't want [it] to be disrupted... Iran, Russia and Turkey moving in unison and not permitting a humanitarian massacre in Idlib... is the picture that we want to see. And that is why this meeting may have been foreseen," Mustafa Sentop said.
The lawmaker said Ankara was very careful about carrying out its duty of separating militants from civilians in Idlib as any escalation of tensions would cause another exodus of refugees to the overcrowded camps in neighboring Turkey.
"[There are] 3.6 million Syrian [refugees] in Turkey. And in Idlib as well [there is] ... significant population. If they feel they are in mortal danger they will also be migrating into Turkey. So for Turkey there is a threat, a risk of migration of course. Turkey is very careful about executing its duties there [in Idlib]. Terrorists and civilians being separated from one another is important," the lawmaker said.
There has been no date set for the next summit of Russian, Turkish and Iranian presidents on Syria. Speaking to reporters after the G20 summit in Osaka, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the summit would be held in July. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that the meeting would take place soon.
The Astana trio first met to discuss the Syrian peace process in the Russian resort city of Sochi in January 2017. In May 2017, the nations signed a landmark memorandum on the creation of de-escalation zones in Syria which largely contributed to the settlement of the crisis.
