Turkey, Russia hold 9th joint patrol in Syria
Turkish and Russian troops have carried out the ninth joint patrol along a key highway in Idlib, northwestern Syria, Turkey’s National Defense Ministry said Thursday, Anadolu Agency reports.
“Within the framework of TUR-RF Agreement/Protocol, the 9th 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.
The M4 highway, also known as the Aleppo-Al Hasakah road, is about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Turkey's southern border.
The eighth joint patrol was conducted on Tuesday.
This March, Ankara and Moscow agreed on a protocol urging parties to “cease all military actions along the line of contact in the Idlib de-escalation area.”
The protocol said joint Turkish-Russian patrols would begin on March 15 along the M4 highway from the settlement of Trumba -- 2 km (1.2 miles) to the west of Saraqib -- to the settlement of Ain al-Havr.