Syria top of the agenda for Erdoğan with Putin
AFP photo
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 start in Syria, Iraq
Speaking at a ceremony to celebrate his return
to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Erdoğan said he would
discuss possible operations in Syria's Manbij and Raqqa with Putin during the
official visit to Russia and with U.S. President Donald
Trump later this month.
“The next step will be Manbij and Raqqa,” he
said May 2 reiterating Turkey's long-term rhetoric which Ankara aims to push Syrian Kurdish fighters to the east
of the Euphrates River and impede possible cooperation between Washington and
the YPG in a massive operation into Raqqa, the de facto ISIL capital.
The president said he hoped his upcoming
discussions with Putin and Trump would start a new era in Syria and Iraq.
Turkey will not allow Kurdish groups to achieve their goals in northern Syria,
he added.
Meanwhile, the guarantor countries of the Syrian
cease-fire regime will gather in Astana on May 3, with experts from Russia, Iran and Turkey. Speaking ahead of the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the
consolidation of the cease-fire regime, ensuring the delivery of humanitarian
aid and ensuring favorable conditions for the political process will be on the
agenda of the talks.
Full normalization of ties
Another important agenda item of the meeting
will be the removal of the embargoes that Moscow has put into practice after
Turkey shot down a Russian plane in 2014.
Mutual steps were taken in the process of normalization, but Russia has not removed obstacles in front of many
agricultural products exported from Turkey. Ankara, in response, removed Russia from the list of countries that could export
wheat, corn and sunflower oil to Turkey free of charge.
Russia will not lift restrictions on certain
products as long as Turkish duties on Russian grain remain in effect, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said
April 21.
While the agricultural trade crisis between Ankara and Moscow continues, Russian Transportation Minister Maksim Sokolov said it
was possible to stop charter flights to Turkey.