Turkish, Iranian foreign ministers discuss preparations for upcoming summit

By Muhammet Tarhan

ANKARA (AA) - The foreign ministers of Türkiye and Iran held a phone call on Saturday about preparations for an upcoming high-level meeting, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Mevlut Cavusoglu and Hossein Amir-Abdollahian held the discussion after the Iranian foreign minister paid an official visit to Türkiye on June 27.

The presidents of the three guarantor states of the Astana process on Syria, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Türkiye, Ebrahim Raisi of Iran, and Vladimir Putin of Russia, are expected to hold a trilateral meeting in Tehran later this month.

The Astana talks for peace in Syria were launched in 2017 at the initiative of these three countries. Its meetings also contribute to the advancement of the UN-led diplomatic process in Geneva.

Syria has been ravaged by a civil war since early 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protesters with unexpected ferocity.

*Writing by Merve Berker