ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Istanbul on Friday, as part of the third Meeting of the 3+3 South Caucasus Regional Cooperation Platform.

The meeting, which took place on the sidelines of the regional cooperation forum, focused on bilateral relations and regional issues, according to sources from the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

The two ministers also discussed preparations for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's upcoming visit to Kazan, a city in southwestern Russia, for the BRICS Summit.

In addition to his talks with Lavrov, Fidan separately met with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.

Their discussion focused on bilateral relations, regional developments, and the ongoing normalization process between Türkiye and Armenia, according to the information from two foreign ministries.

The 3+3 platform, which includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, along with neighboring countries Iran, Russia, and Türkiye, aims to foster regional cooperation in the South Caucasus.

Foreign ministers from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, and Russia joined Fidan for the Istanbul meeting.

The first talks in the 3+3 format were held in Moscow in December 2021 at the deputy foreign ministers’ level, also without Georgia's participation.

*Writing and contributions by Yasin Gungor