Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 19

Trend:

Turkey hopes for a positive outcome from the Syrian talks between the government and the opposition, to be held in Astana Jan. 23, Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek told TASS on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"We are optimistic in the sense that for the first time key players - Russia, Iran and Turkey - have a lot of common ground to put an end to this human tragedy," he said. "And these players can make a big difference."

"There have been a lot of efforts in the past in Geneva and elsewhere but there was a broad sort of effort and people just literally shouted at each other," the deputy PM said. "You know, they talked past each other."

"So now for the first time the actors who have big stakes, who are on the ground, who have significant influence on the conflicting sides, are together working on this," Simsek continued. "So, they can make a big difference. We have high hopes."