Turkey-Russia hold second joint patrol in N Syria

ANKARA

Russian and Turkish troops on Nov. 5 carried out a second joint patrol mission near the Syrian-Turkish border, the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a statement.

“Within the framework of the agreement reached with the Russian Federation in Sochi on October 22, 2019, the second joint land patrol began with the participation of Turkish and Russian military elements and UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) in the Ayn al Arab region to the east of the Euphrates,” said the ministry.

The second joint patrol of Turkish Air Forces and Russian convoy carried out reconnaissance patrols east of Ayn al-Arab and west of Tal Abyad districts, aiming to drive out members of the YPG from the agreed area.

“With the participation of Turkish and Russian military elements and UAVs, the second land patrol in the east of Euphrates was completed as planned. A total of eight land vehicles, four from each side and UAVs, participated in the second land patrol carried out in Ayn al-Arab region. Turkish and Russian military elements patrolled the 73-kilometer route,” the ministry said in a separate statement after the two-hour patrol mission.

On Nov. 1, Turkey and Russia military personnel completed the first joint ground patrol, which lasted for four hours. The joint patrol of Turkey and Russia took place in northern Syria at 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Ras al-Ayn and 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) west of Qamishli city. After the patrol, Turkish military personnel returned to the Turkey-Syria border line.

Ras al-Ayn and Tal Abyad were cleared of terrorists during Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring - launched on Oct. 9 to eliminate terrorists from northern Syria east of the Euphrates River in order to secure Turkey’s borders, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees and ensure Syria’s territorial integrity.