Turkey's top diplomat Çavuşoğlu in Moscow to discuss Syria

ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has arrived in Moscow to discuss developments in Syria with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

“We are in #Moscow to discuss common efforts for the establishment of peace and stability in #Syria, as well as other issues on the agenda of #Turkey-Russian Federation,” Çavuşoğlu said on his official Twitter account late on Aug. 23.

Turkey’s top diplomat’s working visit was announced by Moscow as well.

“Special attention will be paid to the problems of the Syrian settlement issues with regards to the coordination of joint steps in the fight against terrorism in Syria,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Aug. 23 in a news conference.

“The intensification of the search for a political solution to the Syrian conflict will be discussed,” she added.

Lavrov and Çavuşoğlu will also discuss the launch of projects in the fields of energy and trade, Zakharova said.

Earlier, Sergey Lavrov said Moscow would continue negotiations and would hope to reach an agreement with Turkey on settlements in the Syrian province of Idlib.

Turkey’s Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and top intelligence officer Hakan Fidan also visited Moscow on Aug. 17 to discuss developments in Syria’s Idlib province.

According to Turkish intelligence reports, at least 250,000 Syrians may flee to Turkey from Idlib if the Syrian regime, which is backed by Russia, launches a military operation into its northwestern province.

Ankara predicts that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would focus on the opposition groups in Idlib after he concluded the ongoing negotiations with the Syrian Kurdish groups in coordination with the United States, Russia and Iran.