Turkey to host four nation summit on Syria crisis

On Oct. 27, Turkey will host the four nation summit on Syria crisis in Istanbul to discuss the conflict in Syria and efforts for a lasting solution to the war in the Arab country. The summit will be held between the leaders of Turkey, France, Germany and Russia. Russia is a main backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government while Turkey has been helping insurgents trying to remove him from power. Though, in September 2018, Russia and Turkey reached an agreement to set up a demilitarized zone around the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib preventing a government offensive on the last rebel stronghold in the country. Idlib and adjacent areas are the last stronghold of rebels. The area is also home to an estimated 3 million people, more than half of whom have already been displaced once during the war. Hence, all aspects of the Syrian conflict are expected to be discussed, including the situation on the ground, the Idlib agreement and efforts for a lasting solution to the conflict.