Three days after the attempted military coup in Turkey, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish his counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan had a telephone conversation, discussing the prospects for peace in the region. Speaking to Sputnik, a senior Iranian official commented on the possibility of Ankara turning over a new leaf in its Syria policy.


During Monday's telephone call, President Rouhani praised the "great political maturity of�the Turkish people, who showed during�this coup attempt that strong-arm tactics have no place in�our region."


Furthermore, the Iranian leader emphasized that Tehran welcomes the return of�stability to�Turkey, which "will contribute to�strengthening peace and stability in�the entire region. We have no doubt that some superpowers, as�well as�terrorists, do not want for�stability to�reign in�Muslim countries. We must therefore all join together to�fight the terrorists, for�the sake of�stability in�the region and the world as�a whole."
In turn, President Erdogan thanked the Iranian president for�the call and stated that "we are even more determined to�work hand-in-hand with�Iran and Russia to�resolve regional problems and to�strengthen our efforts to�return peace and stability to�the region and to�free it from�the terrorists."


Speaking to�Sputnik Persian, Hossein Sheikholeslam, international affairs advisor to�the speaker of�Iran's parliament, outlined Tehran's position with�regard to�the real prospects for�cooperation with�Ankara.
To begin with, the official noted, "one of�the reasons for�the attempted military coup in�Turkey was Ankara's decision to�begin changing its position on�Syria and to�start cooperating with�the Syrian government."


"This failed coup is a signal to�the Turkish Prime Minister, and to�those who support the terrorist groups � including Washington and the Saudi monarchy, that they need to�change their policy in�Syria," Sheikholeslam added.


"Given that some Western countries saw it as�a priority to�support the terrorists in�Syria via�Turkey, their intelligence services, together with�those of�Israel, planned out�and attempted to�carry out�this coup. At the same time, they acted in�a rather disorganized, hasty and thoughtless manner. The only thing we have witnessed in�response is a change of�the Turkish authorities' position on�regional issues, including Syria."

Asked to�comment on�President Erdogan's words about 'working hand in�hand with�Iran and Russia' to�ensure regional stability, Sheikholeslam suggested this was quite natural. "After all, Erdogan has witnessed the cohesive manner in�which Russia and Iran have worked and continue to�work in�the fight against�the terrorists."
Ultimately, the official noted, "we hope that Turkey will change its position on�Syria not just in�words, but�in actions. For this reason, it's difficult to�say whether Tehran is ready to�accept Ankara's proposal. We need to�see that the Turkish leader's words are backed up�by his actions."


As far as�Damascus is concerned, the road to�rapproachement with�Ankara is likely to�be even longer than�that with�Tehran and Moscow, in�light of�Turkey's consistent policy of�supporting the terrorist groups which have terrorized Syria over�the last five years. Nevertheless, if Ankara is serious, the Syrian government cannot but�welcome the closure of�the Syrian-Turkish border, through�which much of�Daesh's fighters, weapons and supplies presently flow. The ball is in�Ankara's court to�make that decision.

By Sputnik