Iran, Turkey, Russia sidelining US in fight against terrorism

The presidents of Iran, Turkey and Russia are to meet in the Turkish capital of Ankara to discuss matters of common interest, especially regional issues and the ongoing fight against terrorists in Syria.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his Russian and Turkish counterparts Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, respectively, will discuss the ongoing situation in the war-torn Arab country on Wednesday.

Presidents of the three countries, as guarantors of ceasefire in Syria, will hold the meeting on the same day that the Russian capital is to host Moscow International Security Conference, which will be attended by defense ministers and other high-ranking officials from about 30 countries.

The important point about the trilateral summit is total exclusion of Western countries, especially the United States, despite claims by Washington that it has been playing a leading role in the fight against terrorist groups in Syria.

The Ankara summit will be the second such meeting among three countries’ presidents, the first of which was held in Russia’s resort city of Sochi on November 22 last year.

During the Sochi summit, Rouhani lauded the defeat of the Daesh terrorist group in Iraq and Syria, but underlined the need for continued battle against terrorism until the eradication of all Takfiri terrorist outfits in Syria.

EA