Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed on Idlib. The Russian leader said this following a bilateral meeting, learned BulgarianMilitary.com.
Putin said that Moscow does not always agree with Turkish partners in assessing what is happening in Syria. “But every time at critical moments, relying on a high level of relations, we were able to find common ground, reach acceptable solutions,” the head of state summarized, adding that this also happened during the meeting.
Following the meeting, the parties agreed on a joint document. According to the president, the agreements reached with Erdogan will become a good basis for resolving the situation in Idlib.
The meeting of the heads of state was held on March 5 in the Kremlin. The negotiations of the two leaders were held in a closed format. The parties discussed “all aspects of the situation in Syria.” Before the meeting, the Russian president noted that Moscow values relations with Ankara.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov read out the text of an additional protocol agreed by the Presidents of Russia and Turkey Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan at negotiations in Moscow to resolve the situation in Syrian Idlib. The broadcast is conducted by “Russia 24” on YouTube.
Lavrov unveiled three points. According to the first, all hostilities on the now existing contact line in Idlib cease from 00:01 on March 6. The second – along the M4 highway connecting northern Syria with Latakia, a six-kilometer-wide security corridor will be created. According to the third, on March 15, joint Russian-Turkish patrols should begin along this highway.
The talks with Putin and Erdogan lasted about six hours, including more than two hours, the presidents had a one-on-one conversation.
The additional protocol agreed by the parties refers to the “Memorandum on the stabilization of the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone”, which was signed in Sochi in September 2018 following the results of negotiations between Putin and Erdogan. The original document was never officially published, but extracts from it were cited by the Arab and Russian press. Then the parties once again agreed, in particular, to create a demilitarized zone in Idlib and joint patrols.
Source: Bulgarian Military
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