Syria–Turkey border

The population of mountain gazelles, residing near the Syrian border in Turkey's southern province of Hatay, has been increasing in a pleasing manner. (AA Photo)

Russia on May 8 marked Turkey's efforts in Syria's Idlib province with an aim to free the key M4 highway from radical groups.

Speaking at a video conference in Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the sustainable stabilization in the area is only possible after separating militants from terrorists.

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.

Thousands of displaced Syrians have begun moving back to their homes in war-torn Idlib province despite the risk of renewed conflict, some driven by fear that the new coronavirus could wreak havoc on crowded camps near the Turkish border.

Turkey cannot host any more refugees, either from Syria or beyond, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on March 23, in an opinion piece in the Financial Times.

Turkey's Defense Ministry said on March 19 that two of its soldiers were killed and another was injured in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, in a rocket attack by "some radical groups".

In a written statement, the ministry said the radical groups in the de-escalation zone attacked Turkish soldiers, adding that its forces had opened fire on targets in the area.

Turkey has a long history of conducting extreme operations with its secret services. The most traumatic of these for us was against the Greek minority in Istanbul in September 1955. On August 21, 2013, it was accused of launching a deadly sarin gas attack on a Damascus suburb, killing hundreds.

Turkey's military will patrol to the north of a security corridor being set up around a highway in northwest Syria's Idlib province and Russian forces will patrol the southern side, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on March 10.

Turkish and Russian military delegations will launch talks on March 10 in Ankara on the specific parameters of the functioning of the security corridor 6 kilometers deep to the north and 6 km deep to the south from the M4 highway in Idlib.