Russia, Turkey hold talks on implementing deals on Syria de-escalation zones – Lavrov

Moscow and Ankara are continuing dialogue to fully implement agreements on de-escalation zones in Syria, including in Idlib region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday in Turkey’s capital. The tasks of overcoming the resistance of the last terrorist groups, and returning armed opposition groups which reject terrorist methods to a peaceful life, are also on the agenda, Lavrov said, speaking at a joint news conference with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu. In Idlib, the situation is more complicated than in other areas, Lavrov said, due to the dominance of the Jabhat al-Nusra, which has tens of thousands of militants there, according to estimates. Idlib in northern Syria is the largest remaining Syrian rebel-held enclave. President Bashar Assad has said his forces will recapture the region where Turkey has set up a dozen military observation posts, Reuters reported. Cavusoglu said on Tuesday that he hoped to find a solution over Idlib during a meeting with Lavrov.