Tehran, IRNA – Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani arrived in the Russian capital Moscow on Monday night to attend a four-party meeting on rebuilding ties between Syria and Turkey.

The Iranian defense minister will join his counterparts from Russia, Turkey and Syria at the Moscow meeting set to be held on Tuesday.

The intelligence chiefs of the four countries will also be present at the meeting, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Monday, according to Turkiye’s Anadolu news agency.  

“Our aim is to solve the problems through negotiations and bring peace and tranquility to the region as soon as possible,” Anadolu quoted the Turkish defense minister as saying, who announced his country’s determination to fight terrorism and ensure Syrian refugees’ return to their homeland.  

Ties between the two neighbors soured after war broke out in Syria in 2011, with Damascus time and again criticizing Ankara for its support to groups fighting the Syrian government.       

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