The developments of bilateral cooperation between Tehran and Damascus, and the regional and international developments, were present as basic files that were discussed during the phone call that took place yesterday between the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Faisal Al-Miqdad, and his Iranian counterpart, Hussein Amir Abdullahian.
The official Iranian News Agency, IRNA, said in a statement that a phone call took place between the Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers, during which the two sides reviewed the latest developments in terms of bilateral cooperation between Tehran and Damascus.
And IRNA reported that the two ministers also reviewed, in this call, the most important developments at the regional and international levels.
The Syrian-Iranian talks come at a time when intensive contacts are continuing to reach a formula for convening the Quartet meeting of the assistant foreign ministers of Syria, Russia, Iran and Turkey, which was confirmed by the official statements issued by Ankara.
Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin stated in his statements yesterday that efforts are under way to hold a quadripartite meeting that includes Iran and Russia on Syria, indicating that this meeting will not include the leaders, as he put it.
In a televised interview, according to Anadolu Agency, Kalin pointed out that additional details about the developments of this track will appear soon, explaining that three main issues are on the table, which are coordination in the war on terrorism, pushing the political process to continue the Astana talks, and a dignified return. Syrian refugees to their homeland.
Yesterday, a “Western” diplomatic source revealed to Al-Watan that consultations regarding the convening of the Quartet meeting of the assistant foreign ministers of Syria, Russia, Iran and Turkey are continuing, and that efforts and diplomatic contacts to hold this meeting are continuing.
The source, who preferred not to be named, indicated that there is a convergence on a number of points that have prevented this meeting from taking place so far, and pointed out that the possibilities of holding the “Quartet” are increasing.
The source pointed out that the guarantees that Damascus insisted on in terms of the constants that it set, regarding the need for the withdrawal of Turkish forces from its lands and the cessation of support for armed organizations, are still on the table, as these constants will necessarily constitute the ground from which any political talks that bring Syria and Turkey together at one table will start.
A few days ago, the “Novosti” agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov as saying: “The four-way consultations at the level of deputy foreign ministers aim to prepare a meeting of foreign ministers.” He added: “Based on the fact that the faster that happens, the better. On the other hand, there are work schedules for our Syrian, Turkish, and Iranian colleagues. While there are no specific dates, we continue to coordinate.
(function(d, s, id){
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/ar/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v3.2”;
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
