The tripartite talks in Moscow bring together the defense ministers of Russia, Turkey and Syria

The Russian Defense Ministry has announced that the Defense Minister Russian Sergey Shoigu, Turkish Hulusi Akar and Syrian Ali Mahmoud Abbas held tripartite talks in Moscow to discuss ways to resolve the Syrian crisis and the need to continue the dialogue to achieve stability in Damascus.

For the first time in 11 years

According to the ministry’s statement: “Tripartite talks between the defense ministers of the Russian Federation, the Syrian Republic and Turkey were held in Moscow on December 28, during which ways of resolving the Syrian crisis and the problem of refugees, and joint efforts to fight extremist groups in Syria”.

He added: “After the meeting, the parties referred to the constructive nature of the dialogue that took place in this way and the need for its continuation, in order to further stabilize the situation in the whole region.”

The Russian Defense Ministry also indicated that Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and Syrian Ali Mahmoud Abbas are meeting in Moscow for the first time in 11 years.

Official visit

The Turkish Defense Ministry has announced that the Turkish Defense Minister and intelligence chief, Hulusi Akar and Hakan Fidan, have come on an official visit to Moscow to hold important talks with their Russian counterparts.

According to the ministry: “National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and the head of the National Intelligence Organization, Hakan Fidan, are in the Russian capital, Moscow, to hold meetings and address important issues with a number of Russian officials.”

Earlier, Akar had commented on the “possible tripartite meeting between the defense ministers of Turkey, Syria and Russia” announced by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

As the Turkish Defense Minister said: “Everything that needs to be done is done according to procedures at all levels in order to protect the rights and interests of our countries, and there are contacts in this area as well.”

Since the outbreak of the Syrian crisis in 2011

The meeting is the first official ministerial-level meeting between Turkey and Syria since the outbreak of the Syrian crisis in 2011, and the resulting tension in relations between Ankara and Damascus.

The foreign ministers of the two countries had held a brief informal talk on the sidelines of a regional summit held in 2021, and Ankara had previously acknowledged the communication at the level of the intelligence services.

According to Turkish media, Turkish intelligence director Hakan Fidan was present in Moscow on Wednesday.

The meeting between Akar and Abbas comes at a time when Erdogan has been threatening for weeks to launch a military strike in northern Syria against Kurdish groups.

Last week, Akar indicated that Ankara is in contact with Moscow to “open Syrian airspace” to Turkish fighters.

Armed conflict… and Syrian factions

In early 2011, Syria witnessed anti-regime demonstrations, which quickly escalated into an armed conflict that significantly strained relations between Damascus and Ankara.

With the onset of the conflict, Turkey strongly opposed the regime of Syrian President Bashar Al-Ashd, supported Syrian opposition factions, and took in some four million Syrian refugees.

The conflict in Syria has claimed the lives of an estimated half a million people and caused massive destruction to infrastructure and productive sectors, and has led to the displacement and displacement of millions of people inside and outside the country.