UPDATE - ‘Efforts against terror groups in Idlib to continue’

ADDS MORE QUOTES BY ERDOGAN

By Ferdi Turkten, Yildiz Nevin Gundogmus and Zafer Fatih Beyaz

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said efforts against terrorist organizations in Syria’s Idlib will continue.

“Our joint fight against terrorist organizations in Syria's Idlib will continue,” Erdogan said in a joint news conference with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

Last September, following a meeting between Erdogan and Putin, the two sides agreed to set up a demilitarized zone in Idlib, Syria.

Under the deal, opposition groups in Idlib are to remain in areas where they are already present, while Russia and Turkey conduct joint patrols in the area to prevent renewed fighting.

The Turkish president stressed necessity of joint fight against terrorist groups, which he said, are aiming to undermine Turkey-Russian cooperation.

“It is critically important that a vacuum during the U.S. withdrawal [from Syria], which can be exploited by terrorists, doesn't form, Erdogan went on to say.

“The U.S. will take measures on threatening regions, which is 30 km deep [in Syria]. We are on the same page with Russia on this topic,” he added.

He said Turkish ministers and officials have held negotiations on safe zone in northern Syria, adding: “sensitivity of the regions that threaten us is of great importance.”

In late December, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the U.S.-led coalition succeeded in militarily defeating the Daesh terrorist group, his "only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency”, in Syria.

Emphasizing that it is time for American forces to return home, Trump later signaled a “slow and highly coordinated pullout” of U.S. troops from Syria following the suggestions of U.S. national security bureaucracy.

When Trump proposed the idea of a terror-free safe zone in northern Syria last week, U.S. officials demanded Turkey to guarantee that it will not conduct an operation against terrorist group YPG/PKK.

Turkey backed the idea of a safe zone in Syria, while it opposed the U.S. request for protection of the terrorists.

Erdogan said that more than 300,000 Syrians returned back to 4,000 square kilometer area in northern Syria following the Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch operations, adding: "This (safe zone) model that helps people return should also be applied in the region east of the Euphrates."

A mission east of the Euphrates River, which Turkey’s leadership has been suggesting for months, would follow two successful cross-border Turkish operations into Syria since 2016 -- Operations Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch -- meant to eradicate the presence of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists near Turkey’s borders.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of some 40,000 people, including women and children. The YPG is its Syrian branch.

- Turkey, Russia vow to cement cooperation

Erdogan said that Turkey has intensive cooperation with Russia in the fields of economy, trade, industry, energy and culture.

"Our cooperation is getting stronger day by day [...] We go on to get positive results in economy," Erdogan said.

"Our commercial relations are also on the rise [...] we have set a big goal -- to reach the $100 billion trade volume," Erdogan said ahead of the joint press conference.

He added that two Turkish-Russian projects -- Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant and TurkStream -- are moving forward.

Akkuyu is set for construction by Russia in the Turkish southern province of Mersin.

The plant, comprising of four units, each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts, will meet about 10 percent of Turkey's electricity needs.

Rosatom, Russia's state nuclear energy corporation, is the major consortium partner for Akkuyu, Turkey's first nuclear power plant.

The TurkStream natural gas pipeline, crossing beneath the Black Sea from Russia to Turkey and set to stretch to Turkey's neighbors, will have a capacity of 31.5 billion cubic meters (bcm).

Turkey will receive 15.75 bcm of the gas, while the remainder will go to Europe.

In addition, Erdogan said that Turkey is a favorite destination for Russian tourists.

"In 2018, we hosted nearly 6 million Russian tourists. I believe this figure will go up in 2019," Erdogan remarked.

He said that visa-free travel between Turkey and Russia will cement the friendship between the people of two countries.

In Dec. 2018, Erdogan said that Putin agreed on partial removal of visa regime between Turkey and Russia during bilateral talks.