UPDATES WITH FOREIGN MINISTER’S QUOTE, BACKGROUND ON SYRIA
By Tugrul Cam
ANKARA (AA) – Turkish Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Russian and Iranian ambassadors following Bashar al-Assad regime’s attacks in Syrian city of Idlib, according to a diplomatic official.
Russia's Ambassador to Ankara Alexei Yerkhov and Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Ebrahim Taherian Fard were summoned to express Turkey's “discomfort” on the Assad regime’s attacks in Idlib, the official, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on talking to the media, said.
Turkey had previously also voiced its discomfort to Russian and Iranian officials, via military and diplomatic channels, about the Assad regime's violations of de-escalation zones that were established during the Astana peace talks aimed at ending the Syria conflict, the official added.
Following the continuation of violations in Idlib, the ambassadors had been summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry, where they were asked to convey to the Assad regime that such violations must end as soon as possible.
Also on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Syrian regime forces were targeting opposition forces “on the pretext of fighting against Al-Nusra terrorist group”.
Cavusoglu warned that such a move would undermine the political settlement process in Syria.
The Russian city of Sochi is the designated venue of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress, which is planned to be held on Jan. 29-30.
The congress is expected to be participated by all segments of Syrian society except for the terror groups.
Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.
Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million others displaced, according to UN officials.
