Syria's military reinforcements: Halting terrorist expansion amidst Astana talks

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The Syrian army has sent massive military reinforcements to areas in northern rural Aleppo controlled by the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" group. But why?

According to the Syrian government-affiliated newspaper Al-Watan, these reinforcements aim to halt terrorist expansion attempts in the northern rural Aleppo areas.

This scene coincided with the start of the 20th round of the Astana meetings for the Syrian file, with the participation of the main players in Syria: Russia, Iran, Turkey, and Syria, in addition to a delegation from the Syrian opposition and observers from the United Nations, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq.

During this meeting, the situation throughout Syria, regional changes concerning Syria, the situation on the ground, and efforts toward a comprehensive settlement in Syria will be discussed.

The agenda also includes discussions on the humanitarian situation and working towards creating conditions for returning Syrian refugees to their homes.

On the sidelines of this meeting, there will be further quadripartite consultations between the deputy foreign ministers of Syria, Russia, Iran, and Turkey to continue normalizing relations between Damascus and Ankara.

According to some observers, a draft roadmap prepared by Russia will be discussed, including broad cooperation lines between the two neighboring countries.

Damascus insists on withdrawing Turkish forces from northern Syria, as emphasized during the quadripartite meeting: Turkey's withdrawal of its troops according to a precise timetable forms the basis for discussing other topics related to the return of refugees and the fight against terrorism in all its forms.

So, will these meetings achieve a breakthrough in the Syrian file and normalizing relations between Syria and Turkey?