Turkish, Russian top soldiers discuss developments in Northern Syria

ANKARA

Turkish and Russian defense ministers held a phone conversation on the recent developments in northern Syria amid Türkiye’s statements that it is planning to launch a new ground cross-border operation against mounting terrorist attacks.

Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu exchanged a phone conversation on Nov. 24, the Turkish defense ministry announced in a statement. The two men discussed the developments in northern Syria and Ukraine, it said.

Akar told his counterpart that Türkiye is going to continue to give necessary response against terror attacks targeting the civilians on the southern border of the country, referring to latest YPG missile attacks that killed two people, including a child.

Preventing the establishment of a terror corridor on the border from where terror threats are stemming from and eliminating terrorist organizations are Türkiye’s priorities, Akar also told Shoigu. According to the statement, the Turkish minister also recalled the importance of the full implementation of the 2019 memorandum of understanding Ankara and Moscow signed which stipulates the latter to clear the terrorists from northern Syria.

Earlier in the day, Akar received the United States Ambassador to Ankara Jeff Flake. There was no detailed statement about the content of the talk.

The diplomatic traffic between Ankara, Washington and Moscow intensified after Türkiye vowed a new ground operation into northern Syria against the presence of the YPG, the Syrian leg of the PKK terrorist organization.

The Turkish military launched a massive air operation against the PKK and YPG targets in northern Iraq and Syria late on Nov. 19 in reaction to a terror attack in downtown Istanbul on Nov. 13 that killed six civilians.

Russia and the U.S. have troops in Syria and called on Türkiye to show restraint and not to further escalate the situation in the region.