President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the Trilateral Summit on Syria, held with the participation of President Putin of the Russian Federation and President Hassan Rouhani of Iran.

Speaking at the opening of the summit, President Erdoğan thanked his Russian counterpart Putin for hosting the fourth summit meeting.

Wishing Allah’s mercy upon those who lost their lives in the attack in Iran, President Erdoğan extended the Turkish people's condolences to President Rouhani. 

"Syrian refugees are counting the days to return home"

Underlining that the Trilateral Summit is taking place at a very critical time, President Erdoğan noted that the Syrian people, who are struggling to survive under the shadow of weapons and bombs for the past eight years, await good news for a lasting political solution from the summit's participants. 

Nearly four million Syrian refugees, hosted as a guest in Turkiye, as well as the ones currently residing in Iraq who are yearning for their homeland are counting the days to return home in peace, said President Erdoğan.

Turkish president added that the summit meetings held so far did not fall short of the expectations and significantly contributed to furthering the political process, ensuring peace, consolidating the ceasefire and combatting terror.

Underscoring that the spirit of Astana process has been determinedly upheld despite all the problems, differences of opinions and provocations aimed at undermining Turkiye’s relations with Russia and Iran, President Erdoğan described the Astana platform as the most successful initiative that puts forward tangible solutions to end the bloodshed in Syria.

President Erdoğan pointed out that a lot of positive developments on the ground, ranging from the declaration of a ceasefire to the formation of de-escalation zones and from the delivery of humanitarian aid to the exchange of prisoners agreement reached on Feb. 12, are the fruits of the Astana platform.

"While we are struggling to end the bloodshed in Syria, some others are working, overtly or covertly, for the continuation of conflicts. Acting with foresight, acumen, and consensus, we have denied those circles any opportunity so far. We have managed to overcome the obstacles that have arisen or been raised in our way through dialogue, as is the case today," said President Erdoğan.

Further stressing that Turkiye has stood by the Syrian people during their most difficult times, President Erdoğan stated: "We have so far provided some 35 billion dollars in humanitarian aid to refugees in all areas."

"We have done and will continue to do our best in order for our neighbor Syria to achieve peace, calm and welfare.”

Expressing his confidence that the summit meeting would result in good news for those who pin their hopes on it, President Erdoğan prayed to Allah for the decisions to be taken at the summit to help further the political transition process.

ILKHA