BEIJING, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- The leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey met Wednesday to discuss the prolonged Syrian crisis, optimistic about a political settlement that would end the six-year war and restore lasting peace and stability in war-torn Syria.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a trilateral summit in Russian city Sochi, Putin said there was "a real chance to end the civil war" in Syria since large-scale military operations against the terrorist group Islamic State (IS) in the country were coming to an end.
Putin said Syria is observing cessation of hostilities while four de-escalation zones had been established. Hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees had also begun returning home.
"It can be stated with certainty that we have reached a new stage that opens the door to a real political settlement process," he said.
In a joint statement after the talks, the three leaders stressed their resolve to continue their cooperation to eliminate the IS in Syria.
They also expressed support for "a broad intra-Syrian dialogue" among all segments of Syrian society.
The three leaders underlined the need for all Syrian parties to take confidence-building measures, including the release of prisoners and hostages, handing over bodies, and identifying missing persons in order to "create (a) better condition for political process and lasting ceasefire."
They also called on the Syrian government and the opposition groups to participate constructively in the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi.
The congress, proposed by Moscow in late October, is expected to bring together opposition and pro-government forces as well as all Syrian ethnic and religious groups to work on the peace process.
The Syrian government welcomed the outcome of the trilateral talks, saying it keenly supported any political effort that contributes to ending the conflict.
Rouhani said he hoped the final statement at the Sochi summit would prepare the ground for a good future for Syria, stressing that the fate of Syria should be decided only by the Syrian people, not foreign parties.
Also on Wednesday, the Syrian opposition groups started a meeting in Riyadh, capital of Saudi Arabia, to unify their positions ahead of a fresh round of Syrian peace talks facilitated by the United Nations.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura urged them to take a "common line" on their country's future.
Though several rounds of UN-brokered talks were held in Geneva between the Syrian government and the opposition groups, little progress has been made.
Erupting in 2011, the armed conflict in Syria quickly turned into full-fledged war, which so far has killed more than 330,000 people and displaced millions.
The conflict also became a breeding ground for terrorism. The IS once reportedly controlled more than 50 percent of Syrian territory.
In September 2015, Russian forces started to take part in anti-terrorism operations launched in Syria to eliminate the IS and recapture the areas held by its fighters.
Moscow has announced that the fight against the IS will possibly be over by the end of this year when Russia would withdraw its air forces.
