Moscow engages Iran and Turkey over ‘dangerous’ escalation in Syria

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held phone calls with his Iranian and Turkish counterparts on Saturday expressing concerns over the "dangerous" escalation of hostilities in Syria, Moscow said.

Rebel fighters began an offensive against Syria's Iranian and Russian-backed government earlier this week, prompting Moscow to launch air strikes in aid of its ally.

Lavrov held separate calls with his Turkish and Iranian counterparts a day after Russia announced the military action.

He and Turkish top diplomat Hakan Fidan "expressed serious concern" and affirmed the need to "coordinate joint action to stabilise the situation", the Russian foreign ministry said in its readout of the call.

In a call with Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, both sides expressed "strong support" for Syria's sovereignty and called for "joint efforts aimed at stabilising the situation", the ministry said.

Moscow is Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad's most important military backer, having turned the tide of the civil war in his favour when it intervened in 2015.