Erdoğan, Putin agree to clear Aleppo of Nusra

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, have agreed to clear the al-Qaeda linked al-Nusra Front from the Syrian city of Aleppo, Erdoğan said on Oct. 19.

Commenting on a phone conversation he had with Putin on Oct. 18, Erdoğan said the two sides had talked about a consensus for taking al-Nusra fighters out of Syria's second largest city. 

"He [Putin] said that as of 10:00 p.m. [Oct. 18] the air bombardment was stopped [in Aleppo]. They [Putin] appealed to us about taking al-Nusra out of the city. We have given the necessary instructions to our friends [officials]. We have talked about a consensus [with Putin] to work on taking al-Nusra out of Aleppo and maintaining the peace of the people of Aleppo," Erdoğan said Oct. 19, addressing a meeting of neighborhood leaders in Ankara. 

A Turkish presidential source told state-run Anadolu Agency that Putin "congratulated Turkey for its success" against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria after Ankara-backed rebels seizing the symbolically important town of Dabiq. 

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in Iraq and Syria, the fight against terror, regional issues and bilateral relations, according to the source.

Putin also talked to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi over the phone on Oct. 18, the Kremlin stated. 
Meanwhile, President Erdoğan warned that around one million Syrians could flee to Turkey if there is an exodus from the city of Aleppo, the rebel-held east of which is currently under siege from Syrian and Russian forces.

He said Turkey alone cannot cope with this additional burden, and those who trigger such an influx must consult Turkey on its consequences.

"Those who want to...