Turkish, Russian diplomats discuss Ankara-Damascus normalization

ANKARA

Senior Turkish and Russian diplomats have discussed the latest developments in Syria amid the latter’s efforts to mediate a new round of normalization talks between Ankara and Damascus.

Deputy Foreign Minister Nuh Yilmaz met on Aug. 3 with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Special Representative for Syria Alexander Lavrentiev in Ankara, according to the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

The two men exchanged views on Syria with the participation of relevant institutes, the ministry said through its social media account.

The talks come Russia launched a new mediation initiative between Türkiye and Syria who have been at odds since 2011. Turkish and Syrian government members had talks in Moscow last year but they could not get any achievement due to Damascus’ preconditions of removal of the Turkish military from its lands.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad recently signaled his readiness to re-launch talks with Türkiye for thawing the bilateral ties. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had reiterated that Türkiye was ready to normalize its ties with Syria through direct talks with Assad.

According to sources, the intelligence services of Türkiye and Syria have already contacted and started to discuss the possibility of a governmental-level meeting between the two countries.

In a recent statement, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan underlined that the current situation in Syria is highly complex, requiring substantial time even to initiate discussions and seriously address the issues.

He underscored that Türkiye considers not only its own needs but also the political independence and territorial integrity of Syria. In addition, Fidan highlighted the importance of developing a national dialogue mechanism within the framework of U.N. Security Council Resolution 2254 principles and pursuing a solution supported by the international community.