Turkish, Syrian leaders may meet in Russia for first time during 13 years

Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad are expected to meet for the first time during 13 years, with negotiations potentially scheduled for September in Russia.

Russia, the Persian Gulf countries, and Iraq are under consideration as potential venues for the meeting. The Damascus administration is leaning towards Iraq, Caliber.Az reports citing the Turkish media.

"Ankara prefers the preparations for the meeting to be discreet. The final venue will be decided after Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Türkiye," the message says.

The timing of the Russian leader’s visit to Turkey has not been disclosed, but Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov mentioned on July 4 in Astana that Putin’s visit is being considered.

According to the newspaper report, preparations for the meeting between Erdogan and Assad will involve establishing bilateral commissions on military, political, economic issues, counterterrorism efforts, and addressing the refugee problem.

According to sources cited by the pro-government newspaper Hürriyet, the main topics of discussion between the presidents of Turkey and Syria will include Syria's sovereignty, the repatriation of refugees, and efforts to combat the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its Syrian affiliate.

The newspaper reports that negotiations between Erdogan and Assad are not anticipated to occur in the near future.

Turkish journalist Abdulkadir Selvi remarked, "It will take some time. The sources do not foresee a meeting in the near future."

He recalled that there was widespread speculation about the possibility of a meeting between the presidents of Turkey and Syria on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Astana on July 3-4.