Syria top of the agenda for Erdoğan with Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will focus on the Syrian crisis and the fight against terrorism in Syria at a meeting on May 3 in Sochi, where the two leaders will seek to eliminate mutual embargos in order to fully normalize bilateral ties.

Joint efforts aiming to consolidate the cease-fire in Syria will be on the agenda of the talks, diplomatic sources told the Hürriyet Daily News. The two leaders will also aim to accelerate efforts to normalize bilateral ties between Turkey and Russia, said the sources.

In March, officials from Turkey and Russia held a meeting in Ankara in order to discuss the upcoming phases of the Astana process, particularly deploying truce observers to the field as mentioned in a Dec. 30, 2016, truce deal. The issue is expected to be on the agenda of the talks.

Russia has suggested that Turkey deploy Turkish cease-fire monitoring forces in Syria after Moscow established the same mission in the northern Afrin region, sources told the Daily News. Russia raised the proposal of a truce monitoring mission by Turkish security officials in the field after Moscow deployed troops near Menagh airport in the Afrin region in March, in collaboration with the People's Protection Units (YPG).  

A cease-fire deal between Turkey and Russia that took effect on Dec. 30, 2016, envisages the establishment of checkpoints in Syria in order to monitor the truce and possible violations. In order to record violations of the cease-fire, "the guarantors will establish checkpoints in residential areas in the vicinity of the actual line of contact among the parties in order to guarantee compliance with the cease-fire by the parties," read an agreement dated on Dec. 29.

New era to...