The presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey met in Ankara Sept. 16 for a new round of Syria talks within the framework of the Astana peace process.

The fifth summit of the three guarantors of the Syrian cease-fire came amid Ankara’s growing concerns over the Syrian army’s military campaign in Idlib, which Moscow supports. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin, Hassan Rouhani and Recep Tayyip Erdogan were expected to announce progress on the formation of the long-awaited Syrian Constitutional Committee, which will be tasked with drafting a new constitution. As such, the summit was expected to be dominated by Idlib and the Constitutional Committee.

Those issues were indeed raised at the meeting, with the three leaders emphasizing the need for a political solution to end the ongoing conflict and to continue fighting terrorist groups in Syria. They also announced the imminent launch of the Constitutional Committee, though provided no exact date.

However, by looking at the positions expressed by each of the three presidents, it can be said that they have different priorities regarding the most urgent issues in Syria. For Putin and Erdogan, the situation in Idlib is of the utmost importance. “We need to take additional measures to completely eliminate the security threats coming from the Idlib de-escalation zone,” Putin said, suggesting that Moscow will continue to support the Syrian government’s military campaign in Idlib. Erdogan reiterated Ankara’s concerns over the situation in the northwestern Syrian province, saying that “Turkey cannot remain silent in the face of a new tragedy at the country’s border that will affect 4 million people.”