Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Tehran on July 19 for a Syria summit with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Russia, Turkey, and Iran have in recent years been holding talks on Syria as part of the so-called “Astana peace process” to end more than 11 years of conflict in the Middle Eastern country. It will be the Kremlin chief’s second visit abroad since he sent troops into Ukraine in late February, after having visited Tajikistan in late June.
Mr. Putin’s visit to Iran will follow US President Joe Biden’s trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia this week, where Iran’s nuclear program will be a key subject of discussion. The White House said Monday that it believes that Russia is turning to Iran to provide it with “hundreds” of drones, including those capable of carrying weapons, for use in Ukraine.
Mohammad Reza Pourebrahimi, the head of the Iranian Parliament’s economic committee, said that Putin’s trip would seek to improve economic relations between the two sanctions-hit nations.
