Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar announced an agreement to establish a coordination center within Syria to fight terrorism.
"Our Syrian interlocutors were told that we have to get rid of the terrorists," the minister was quoted by TV100 on Wednesday as saying. - "We cannot withstand the additional influx of refugees [from Syria], we have to prevent it. So our presence in Syria is very important. We are working intensively with the ministries in order to normalize life in the regions where we are present. We have discussed the need to work together and have agreed to establish a coordination center within Syria."
Akar did not specify who would be involved in this coordination center and when it might start working.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of Russia, Iran, Syria and Turkey will hold a four-party meeting in Moscow on Wednesday. An exchange of views on normalizing relations between Turkey and Syria, discussing humanitarian issues, the fight against terrorism, the political process, and the return of refugees is planned. Bilateral meetings are also scheduled.
The process of normalization of relations between Ankara and Damascus was launched in Moscow on December 28, 2022, when consultations between the heads of military departments of Russia, Syria and Turkey took place. At the meeting, it was agreed to establish a joint trilateral commission. These consultations were followed by a meeting at the level of foreign ministers to prepare for talks between Turkish and Syrian Presidents Tayyip Erdogan and Bashar al-Assad. Later, it was reported that Iran would take part in the consultations at the level of foreign ministers.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: AP/TASS
Based on materials from TASS