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Sochi summit exposes limitations of Moscow's Syria policy

The Sochi meeting was crippled from the very beginning because of Turkey's military offensive in Afrin and the alienation of the Kurds.
Participants attend a session of the Syrian Congress of National Dialogue in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia January 30, 2018. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - HP1EE1U11DHOT

The Sochi summit that took place at the end of January was designed to underline the successful achievements of Russia’s involvement in Syria and to consolidate the partnership among Russia, Turkey and Iran. However, the summit revealed the limitations of Russia's Syria policy instead of Moscow’s growing influence across the Middle East.

The Russian propaganda machine painted a rosy picture by emphasizing that more than 1,500 Syrians participated in the summit to rebuild their country. However, these efforts couldn’t conceal that the Syrian Kurds, outraged by Turkey’s Afrin operation, boycotted the meeting.

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