Turkey, Iran and Russia pledged on Wednesday to step up efforts to stabilize Syria, underscoring their joint commitment to the country a day after U.S. President Donald Trump raised the prospect of withdrawing U.S. troops.
After the leaders of the three countries held a summit meeting in the Turkish capital of Ankara, they said they were determined to "speed up their efforts to ensure calm on the ground" in Syria.
While their decision to work together has done little to reduce violence, in part because of their own military interventions on opposing sides, the meeting highlighted their key roles.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said developments in Syria, where the Syrian army and its allies have driven back rebels in recent years, showed that the United States had "failed to topple the Syrian government," headed by President Bashar Assad.
"They wanted to fuel insecurity in order to maintain their own interests but they have gained no success," Rouhani told a news conference after talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, he added that he believed U.S. forces would remain in Syria.
Rouhani also accused the U.S. of funding the Islamic State group in Syria, and said the "Zionists" were helping terrorists carry out attacks in the country.
In response, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were "no bounds to the absurdity" of Iran's claims.
"The Iranian terrorist octopus is accusing Israel of terrorism. If Rouhani isn't aware of the terrorist actions that [Iran's] Al-Quds force carries out daily in Syria, Israel would be happy to bring him up to speed on that," Netanyahu said.
Iran and Russia have both strongly supported the Syrian president, while Turkey backed anti-Assad rebels. Those differences have continued on the ground despite their political cooperation aimed at scaling back some of the violence.
Turkey has waged a military campaign to drive Kurdish YPG fighters from northwestern Syria's Afrin district, while Russian air power and Iran-backed militias have supported Syrian army offensives in the Idlib and Ghouta regions.
Iran's state television quoted Rouhani as telling Erdogan and Putin that Afrin should be handed over to Syria's army.
"The developments in Afrin can only be useful if they do not violate Syria's territorial integrity, and control of these areas should be handed over to the Syrian army," Rouhani said.
Erdogan has said the Turkish army will extend its military operation after Afrin to the town of Tel Rifaat and then further east along Syria's border with Turkey – a prospect that has angered Tehran.
Erdogan also said that Syria's territorial integrity depends on maintaining distance from all terrorist organizations, a reference to U.S. support for the Syrian Kurdish militia, which Ankara considers an enemy.
"Whatever the intentions are, Turkey's moves in Syria, whether in Afrin, Tel Rifaat or any other part of Syria, should be halted as soon as possible," a senior Iranian official told Reuters before Wednesday's talks.
Seated alongside Putin and Rouhani, Erdogan focused on areas of common ground, saying that Turkey wants to build a mobile hospital to help treat civilians coming from formerly rebel-controlled parts of eastern Ghouta, on the edge of Damascus, which the Syrian army has taken over.
Rebel fighters and civilians who were evacuated from eastern Ghouta have been taken to the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib, which borders Turkey.
Erdogan proposed providing a bakery to help feed refugees and build housing on both sides of the border.
"We can save these people from tents and container cities by building housing. We can, all together, make that zone safe," Erdogan said. The Turkish leader said hopes for ultimate success in Syria are growing stronger.
