Putin announces an agreement on halting combat operations in Idleb

MOSCOW, (ST)-Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced the he and his Turkish counterpart reached an agreement to halt combat operations in Syria’s Idleb, saying that the agreement, which will come into force at midnight on the current frontlines, underlined that both Moscow and Ankara remained committed to maintaining the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Syria.

In a press conference following his talks with Erdogan, the Russian leader said that “Moscow doesn’t always have agreement with Turkey on all issues when it comes to Syria, but the two countries have always managed to find a common ground in the end.”

Putin called for commitment to Syria’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity and to pressing ahead with the fight against terrorism in the country.

 He also stressed the two countries’ readiness to continue working within the frame of Astana process to solve the crisis in Syria.

According to Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the agreement provides for stopping all combat operations on “the current front line” in Idleb as of the first minute of March 6th, 2020. It also provides for setting up a safe passage with a depth of  6 km along the M4-Saraqeb-Lattakia road.

Joint Russian-Turkish patrols will be carried out along the M4 international highway to protect it, Lavrov said.

 He added Russia and Turkey stress their commitment to Syria’s territorial integrity, independence and sovereignty, pointing out that there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria, but only a peaceful solution through a political process that is led by the Syrians in accordance with UNSC resolution No.2254.

Lavrov also emphasized the need to protect civilians, provide humanitarian aid to those who need and work to help displaced Syrians return to their areas.

Hamda Mustafa