(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) ANKARA, Sept 16 (KUNA) -- Turkey, Russia and Iran have renewed their commitment to Astana ceasefire agreement and its mechanism to end the eight-year civil conflict in Syria.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani re-committed their countries to the Astana approach at the opening of their summit in Ankara on Monday.
Today's summit would give impetus to Astana agreement, which is the only initiative capable of finding concrete solutions to the Syrian crisis, the Turkish leader said in inaugural speech.
He stated that there was a consensus on the three countries on preserving Syria's political and territorial integrity and maintaining calm on the ground to pave the way for a permanent political solution to the conflict.
The summit would discuss the latest developments in the restive northwestern province of Idlib and the fight against terror in the area east of the Euphrates River and the return of refugees, he pointed out.
He underlined the need to double efforts to bring the war in the Syria to a halt.
The Turkish president vowed that his country would go ahead with its efforts to eliminate terrorism east of the Euphrates.
For his part, Iranian leader Rouhani asked the United States to pull its troops out of Syria, describing the US presence there as illegal.
The three countries were seeking to achieve peace in Syria, fight terrorist organizations, help Syrian people write a new constitution and provide refugees with humanitarian assistance, he said in his speech at the summit.
He stressed that there would be no military solution to the Syrian crisis, but rather inclusive diplomatic and political ones.
For his part, Russian President Putin said that Russia, Turkey and Iran had set the foundation for a permanent solution to the crisis in Syria.
He hailed Astana agreement as the most effective tool for finding a solution to the conflict in Syria.
Restoring stability in Syria would be achieved through joint efforts that aimed at reducing violence and resolving security problems east of the Euphrates without encroaching upon the territorial integrity of Syria, he clarified.
He pointed out that 13 rounds of meetings were held within the framework of Astana pact. Moreover, Iraq and Lebanon had joined the meetings as observers, he said.
He noted that since the start of Astana meetings about 390,000 Syrian refugees had returned to their country.
Earlier, the Turkish president held separate talks with his Iranian and Russian counterparts.
Turkey, Russia and Iran are guarantors of the implementation of the 2017 Astana ceasefire agreement in Syria's de-escalation zones, especially in Idlib. (end)
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