Foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey, Iran to meet in Ankara on April 4 before leaders’ summit

The foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey and Iran will meet in Ankara on April 4, RIA Novosti reported Monday, citing a representative of the Turkish Foreign Ministry. The meeting will take place ahead of the three states’ leaders’ second summit on the Syrian settlement. Presidents Vladimir Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Hassan Rouhani will meet on April 4 in Turkey’s capital. The first such summit took place in Sochi on November 2016. “We expect the leaders, both during their meeting and in a joint statement, to reiterate their commitment to support Syria’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity,” Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said on Monday, as cited by TASS. “Additional steps are likely to be drawn up that would help ensure the ceasefire and the proper functioning of the so-called de-escalation zones [in Syria],” Ushakov said.