Deputy foreign ministers from Russia, Turkey, Syria and Iran on Tuesday completed two days of talks in Moscow aimed at restoring ties between Ankara and Damascus, in a step aimed at easing the international isolation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The four countries discussed preparations for a meeting between their top diplomats, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website that gave no further details.
The diplomatic push, opposed by the U.S., is part of broader efforts by Russia and China to challenge Washington in the Middle East. It comes after China demonstrated its new-found weight in the region by brokering a diplomatic detente between Iran and U.S. ally Saudi Arabia. The U.S. has about 900 troops in Syria, a presence that Moscow and Damascus have long sought to end.
