Iran, Russia, Turkey to Meet on Syria on Dec. 20


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A trilateral meeting of Iran, Russia and Turkey on the situation in Syria will be held on Tuesday, December 20, one week sooner than what Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman had initially announced.

In a telephone conversation of Saturday evening, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov discussed the latest developments in Syria, particularly following the recent liberation of the city of Aleppo from terrorists.

Considering the rapid pace of developments in Syria, the two ministers agreed that a trilateral meeting with Turkey, initially scheduled for December 27 in Moscow, be held on December 20.

The three-party talks on the crisis in Syria will be held at the initiative of Foreign Minister Zarif.

The Syrian army took nearly all remaining terrorist-held parts of Aleppo this week after a four-year battle.

Hundreds of foreign-backed terrorists have surrendered in Aleppo in recent days. Following the army significant gains on the ground, Syrian people took to the streets of Aleppo on Wednesday to celebrate the city’s recapture.

However, the evacuation of people from Aleppo has been hampered as the terrorist groups violated an agreement with the Syrian government by trying to take hostages with them.

Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including Daesh (ISIL), controlling parts of it.