Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has said that the Astana process to revive the Syrian peace process, led by Russia, Turkey and Iran, is working alongside the UN's long-running Geneva discussions rather than competing with them. <br/><br/>Address at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in London, he said this process is not competing with the Geneva process. He said Astana peace talks, trilateral meetings, are not an alternative to Geneva.<br/>'<br/>Russian President Vladimir Putin, alongside Iran and Turkey, has stepped up diplomatic and military initiatives focused on Syria in recent months, including holding seven meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan. <br/><br/>He also hosted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last week for three hours of talks aimed at laying the groundwork for progress in the long-dormant peace process.