Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that breakdown of Syria has been prevented, and that a new stage has been reached for the possible transition to a political settlement in the war-torn country. <br/><br/>The leaders of Russia, Iran, Turkey held a trilateral summit in the Russian city Sochi testerday, discussing the current situation in Syria and further joint steps to restore peace and security in the country. <br/><br/>Xinhua news agency reports that Mr Putin said, due to efforts of Russia, Iran and Turkey, it was possible to prevent the disintegration of Syria as well as to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. <br/><br/>The Syrian armed conflict broke out in 2011 and Russia started to participate in the anti-terrorist operations in Syria in September 2015. <br/><br/>