Iran to host Putin_ Erdogan for talks
Iran's president will host his Russian and Turkish counterpart Putin and Erdogan on Tuesday for talks on the Syrian war in a three-way summit overshadowed by fallout from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The summit is the first hosted by Iran's ultra-conservative President Ebrahim Raisi since he took office last year_ and the second trip abroad by Russia's Vladimir Putin since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February.
It comes days after U.S. President Joe Biden visited the Middle East for the first time since taking office_ with stops in Iran's regional foes Israel and Saudi Arabia.
But the trilateral summit is ostensibly centred on Syria_ as part of the so-called Astana peace process to end more than 11 years of conflict in the Arab country.
All three are involved in Syria_ with Iran and Russia supporting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and Turkey backing rebel forces.
The gathering comes after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened late last year to launch a new offensive in northern Syria against Kurdish militants.
Iran has already warned that any Turkish military action in Syria could 'destabilize the region.'
The summit will also enable Erdogan to hold his first meeting with Putin since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
The Turkish president has for months been offering to meet the Russian leader in a bid to help resolve heightened global tensions since the war began.
'The timing of this summit is not a coincidence_' Russian analyst Vladimir Sotnikov told AFP.
'Turkey wants to conduct a 'special operation' in Syria just as Russia is implementing a 'special operation' in Ukraine_' he said.
Turkey has launched waves of attacks on Syria since 2016_ targeting Kurdish militias as well as Islamic State group jihadists and forces loyal to Assad.
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