Leaders discuss options for Syria

MOSCOW — The leaders of Russia, Turkey and Iran on Wednesday discussed ways to promote a peaceful settlement in Syria, including the return of refugees, humanitarian aid and prisoners’ exchange. Fractured Syrian opposition groups were meeting in Saudi Arabia in a bid to overcome their divisions and form a united front for Syrian peace talks in Geneva.

“Militants in Syria have received a decisive blow, and there is a real chance to put an end to the civil war that has raged for many years,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the start of talks with Turkish and Iranian counterparts in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Putin noted that political settlement will require concessions from all sides, including Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government.

Assad made a surprise trip to Russia Monday for talks with Putin, which the Kremlin said were intended to lay the groundwork for Wednesday’s trilateral meeting.

Speaking after the threeway talks, Putin said the Syrian leader pledged to conduct constitutional reforms and hold new elections under U.N. supervision.

In their joint statement after the talks, Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan emphasized the need for all parties in the Syrian conflict to release all prisoners and hostages, hand over bodies and search for those missing.

They also called on other countries to provide humanitarian aid, clear Syrian territory of mines and restore vital infrastructure destroyed by the war.