Washington 's sudden announcement that it has withdrawn its forces from Syria has changed the balance of power calculations. To discuss developments in the situation there, Turkish and Russian officials met in Moscow to see their countries agree on coordination on Syria ahead of a planned meeting between Putin and Erdogan.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Foreign Minister Sergei Schweigo held a meeting in Moscow on Saturday with their Turkish counterparts Mouloud Javishoglu and Khalosi Akar to discuss developments in Syria after Washington announced last week its decision to withdraw its troops from there.
"We intend to talk again about the security situation in Idlib and disarmament in the region," Schweiggo said during the meeting. The issue is expected to be discussed at a possible summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan next year.
Lavrov described the talks between his country and Turkey on Syria as "useful," and said after their conclusion "we focused in particular on the new circumstances that appear to be linked to the declared US military withdrawal." Pointing out that the issues of combating terrorism, the return of refugees and humanitarian affairs were discussed, according to the Sputnik news site.
Lavrov said that "the next steps to implement the tasks, which were developed in the form of Astana, were discussed in the first place in the context of the fight against terrorism and the settlement of humanitarian issues and the provision of conditions for the return of refugees," stressing that Russia and Turkey agreed to coordinate "on the ground" To defeat terrorists once and for all in the country. Both sides stressed the need to respect Syrian territorial integrity and strict compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 2254.
"An understanding has been reached on the way in which the military representatives of Russia and Turkey will continue to coordinate their moves on the ground under new circumstances and within the vision of eradicating terrorist threats in Syria," Lavrov said.
Turkey and Russia have a common goal of purging Syria of terrorist organizations, the Turkish news agency Anatolia quoted the Turkish foreign minister as saying on Saturday in Moscow. Turkey will continue to work closely with Iran and Russia on Syria and regional issues, the agency said.
US President Donald Trump abruptly announced more than a week ago that his forces would withdraw US ground troops from Syria. Trump said Washington would withdraw about 2,000 US troops from there. According to statements by the White House, the withdrawal of troops has already begun, and may take several months.
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