Russian, Turkish defense ministers discuss situation in Syria's Idlib

Syrian military personnel are seen in the town of Tal Toukan, the countryside of Idlib province in northwestern Syria on Feb. 5, 2020. (Str/Xinhua)

The two ministers discussed the issues of stabilization of the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

MOSCOW, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu discussed the situation in the Syrian city of Idlib with his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar during a phone conversation, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement Saturday.

"During the phone conversation, the two sides discussed the issues of stabilization of the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone," the statement made available to Xinhua reads.

The ministers exchanged opinions on the situation in Syria, it added.

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed during a phone conversation the recent escalation of tensions in Idlib and confirmed that intense military contacts would continue amid the Idlib escalation.

On Thursday, Syrian government troops backed up by Russian warplanes repelled several massive attacks by militants supported by Turkish artillery fire in Idlib.

Russia's Su-24 attack aircraft struck the militants, while the Russian military urged Turkey to stop supporting the militants and halt supplying weapons to them in order to avoid future incidents.