ASTANA, January 25. /TASS/. Russia, Turkey and Iran have agreed on holding the 22nd meeting on Syria in the Astana format in the capital of Kazakhstan in the second half of this year, according to a joint statement of Russia, Iran and Turkey following the results of the 21st international meeting.

"[The parties] agreed to hold the 22nd international meeting on Syria in Astana in the second half of 2024," the document reads.

In June 2023, at the 20th meeting, Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry suggested rounding off the talks on Syria in Astana and tied the decision to the fact that the Astana process had met its objective. The ministry particularly emphasized Ankara's wishes to re-establish relations with Damascus and Syria's return to the Arab League. The Kazakh authorities, however, as the country's foreign ministry noted, chose to organize a new, 21st meeting, "in accordance with the collective request of the guarantor states" of the platform, namely Russia, Iran and Turkey.