Military operations

Turkish and Russian forces conducted the seventh joint patrol along a key highway in northwestern Syria, Turkey's National Defense Ministry said on April 30. 

"Within the framework of TUR-RF Agreement/Protocol, the 7th TUR-RF Combined Land Patrol on M-4 Highway in Idlib was conducted with the participation of land and air elements," the ministry said on Twitter.

Turkish and Russian forces carried out their sixth joint patrol along a key highway in northwestern Syria on April 28.

Russia on April 23 praised Turkey's efforts in Idlib, northwestern Syria that aim to eliminate terrorists.

Speaking at a news conference in the capital, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow expects the Turkish military to separate opposition groups from what it called "terrorists" in the region.

Turkey has expressed concerns in a meeting with Russia and Iran over the acts by the YPG in eastern Syria to legitimize itself through fait accompli.

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif came together in a teleconference on April 22 as the three guarantor countries under the Astana Process.

Turkish and Russian military forces have carried out another joint patrol along a key highway in northwestern Syria, said Turkey's Defense Ministry on April 21. 

"Fifth combined Turkish-Russian land patrol was conducted today by air and ground vehicles on M4 motorway in Syria's Idlib province, as part of the earlier TR-RF agreement," the ministry said on Twitter.

The foreign ministers of Turkey, Russia and Iran will hold a teleconference meeting on April 22 to discuss the developments in the Idlib province of Syria amid a fragile ceasefire between the Turkish army and Syrian regime forces.

Turkish and Russian troops have carried out their fourth combined patrolling on the M4 highway in the Idlib province of Syria, the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a written statement.

Hundreds and thousands of displaced Syrians have started to return to their homes in war-ravaged Idlib province, after the cease-fire was ensured in the province, according to Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency.

Mohamed al-Hallaj, director of the Response Coordinators Team, told Anadolu Agency that over 100,000 Syrians, who were staying at camps, returned to their homes.

Turkish and Russian troops have conducted their third joint patrolling mission, the Turkish defense minister said on April 8, in line with the March 5 agreement brokered between Ankara and Moscow that brought a temporary cease-fire in Syria's Idlib province.

Turkish security forces have destroyed 38 claymore mines, three anti-tank mines, and five kilograms of explosive material in northern Syria within the area of its recent anti-terror operation in the region, the Defense Ministry said on March 27.