China News Agency, Moscow, March 5 (Reporter Wang Xiujun) Russian President Putin and visiting Turkish President Erdogan met in Moscow on 5 September to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria's Idlib region.
According to the TASS news agency, Putin and Erdogan had a one-to-one meeting that day, after which the delegations of the two sides participated in the talks, and the total length of the talks was about 6 hours. After the talks, the Russian and Turkish foreign ministers announced the agreement reached by the two sides. The agreement stipulates that from March 6, the belligerents in the Idlib region will end all military operations on the current front; Russia and Turkey will set a 6 km range on the north and south sides of the M4 highway in Latakia-Aleppo. It is a safe corridor; from March 15, Russia and Turkey will patrol along the highway.
At a press conference held after the talks, Putin expressed the hope that the agreement will lay a good foundation for ending the war in the downgraded zone of the Idlib conflict and create conditions for the parties to the Syrian conflict to continue the peace process.
Putin said that the principle of Russia and Turkey is to safeguard Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The two sides intend to continue cooperation on the Syrian issue within the framework of the Astana model.
Erdogan said that we will implement a ceasefire as soon as possible, but reserve the right to respond to any attack. Turkey will make every effort to provide the necessary assistance to all those in need in Syria to help Syrian refugees return to their places of residence.
Syria's Idlib area borders Turkey and is the last major area controlled by Syrian opposition armed and terrorist groups. Syrian government forces have been hoping to recapture this area. In September 2018, Putin and Erdogan decided to establish a demilitarized zone between Syrian government forces and opposition forces in Idlib. The Turkish side can set up 12 observation points in the Idlib area.
The situation in Idlib has recently escalated. On the evening of February 27, Syrian government forces launched an air strike on the Idlib area. Due to the mix of Turkish soldiers and Syrian militants, the air strike caused heavy casualties to the Turkish Army. Since then, Turkey has launched a large-scale military operation, shooting down multiple Syrian warplanes and destroying a large number of ground targets. Syrian government forces subsequently launched a counterattack and announced on March 1 the closure of Idlib airspace. (Finish)