Russian President Vladimir Putin will next week visit Tehran where he will meet with his Iranian and Turkish counterparts, Ebrahim Raisi and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, respectively, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.
“Yes, we can confirm that. Arrangements are underway for the president’s visit to Tehran. A meeting of the leaders of the states that serve guarantors for the Astana peace process will take place there,” Peskov said, specifying that the trip will take place on July 19.
Apart from the trilateral meeting, bilateral ones will also be held in Tehran, Peskov added.
“Yesterday, we announced highest-level contacts between Putin and Erdogan. Well, such a meeting will also take place there,” Peskov said.
The political settlement in Syria was initiated by Russia, Turkey and Iran, the three countries that also acted as guarantors for the Syrian peace process, with government officials from Damascus and Syrian opposition members involved. The first negotiations were held in Astana, the then capital of Kazakhstan, in January 2017. Astana was renamed Nur-Sultan in 2019, yet the peace talks are still known as the Astana format talks.