Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Thursday that Russia is not discussing the future of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in its talks with Iran and Turkey.
In an interview with Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency on Thursday, Ryabkov said Assad’s future is “absolutely not a topic for discussion right now” between Russia, Iran and Turkey.
The foreign and defense ministers of the three countries met in Moscow on Tuesday and agreed to help broker a new peace deal for Syria.
Russia, Turkey and Iran agreed that the number one priority in Syria is not regime change, but suppressing the terrorist threat.