Putin: agreements reached between Russia and Turkey would stabilize the situation in Syria’s Idlib province

By Victoria Hudson.

According to ‘Reuters’ the Russian President Vladimir Putin told Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a phone call on Friday that agreements reached between Russia and Turkey at recent talks would stabilize the situation in Syria’s Idlib province. A statement released yesterday by the Kremlin reaffirms that “Bashar al-Assad rated the outcome of the talks between the leaders of Russia and Turkey highly and expressed his gratitude to Russia’s president for supporting the fight against terrorist groups”. During a visit of Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Moscow, Turkey and Russia agreed a ceasefire deal in Idlib, aiming to contain a conflict which has displaced nearly a million people in the last three months.

Erdogan and Putin said they reached agreements on a cease-fire to take effect at midnight Thursday in north-western Syria, where escalating fighting had threatened to put forces from the two countries into a direct military conflict. The two leaders also said the deal envisions setting up a security corridor along a strategic highway in Idlib province. Putin voiced hope the deal will serve as a “good basis for ending the fighting in the Idlib de-escalation zone, put an end to suffering of civilian population and contain a growing humanitarian crisis.” Both had underlined the need to reach agreement at the start of the Kremlin talks, which lasted more than six hours. One goal had been to prevent damage to their bilateral relations and blossoming Russia-Turkey trade.