Russia's Putin, Syria's Assad hold phone talk

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone talk with Syria's Bashar al-Assad on Friday, the Kremlin said.

"Vladimir Putin informed Bashar al-Assad about the agreements reached during the Russian-Turkish summit held on March 5, stressing that their implementation will help stabilize the situation in the Idlib zone," the Kremlin said in a statement, published on its official website.

In return, "Bashar al-Assad praised the results of the talks between the leaders of Russia and Turkey and expressed gratitude to the Russian president for his support in the fight against terrorist groups and for efforts aimed at ensuring the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria," the statement said.

On Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Putin agreed in Moscow to a new cease-fire in Idlib.

On Feb. 27, Turkey launched Operation Spring Shield in Idlib after at least 34 Turkish soldiers were martyred last week in an Assad regime airstrike in Idlib.

Under a 2018 deal with Russia, Turkish troops were in Idlib to protect civilians from attacks by the regime and its allies as regime aggression led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians who took shelter near Turkish borders.