Turkey, Russia talks to back Syria operation: Erdogan

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) – Meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin will contribute to Ankara's anti-terror operation in Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday.

"I believe that this meeting will provide very substantial opportunities to Operation Peace Spring," Erdogan said ahead of a bilateral meeting with Putin in Russia’s coastal city of Sochi.

Erdogan said the two leaders will also exchange views on bilateral relations.

Putin, for his part, said Russia is aware of "very different dynamics" of the situation in northern Syria, adding the meeting with Erdogan will be "fruitful."

Erdogan’s one-day working visit comes after Ankara launched Operation Peace Spring on Oct. 9 to eliminate terrorists from northern Syria in order to secure Turkey’s borders, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees, and ensure Syria’s territorial integrity.

On Oct. 17, a U.S. delegation headed by Vice President Mike Pence paid a working visit to the capital Ankara, where they met Erdogan and discussed Turkey's anti-terror operation.

Following the meeting, the two sides reached a 13-article agreement on northeastern Syria.

As part of the deal, Turkey paused its anti-terror push east of the Euphrates River for 120 hours to allow the withdrawal of terrorist PKK and its Syrian offshoot YPG from the planned safe zone.