Russian, Turkish, Iranian presidents to meet in Tehran next week

Leaders to also hold bilateral meetings on sidelines of Astana format talks

MOSCOW:

Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Iran's capital Tehran on July 19 to take part in a trilateral meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Kremlin spokesman said on Tuesday.

Putin will also hold a separate bilateral meeting with Erdogan, Dmitry Peskov told a press briefing in Moscow.

"The president's trip to Tehran is being prepared. There will be a meeting of the heads of the guarantor states of the Astana process. In addition to the trilateral meeting, bilateral meetings will also take place.

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"Yesterday we informed about the upcoming high-level contacts between Putin and Erdogan, this meeting will also be held there," he said.

Astana talks for peace in Syria were launched in 2017 at the initiative of Türkiye, Russia, and Iran. Its meetings also contribute to the advancement of the UN-led diplomatic process in Geneva.

Asked about a possibility of the resumption of Russia-Ukraine peace talks, Peskov said: "No, this is out of the question now."

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Commenting on the July 11 decree allowing fast-track Russian citizenship for all Ukrainians, Peskov said the decision is important because many Ukrainians want to become Russian citizens.