Erdogan arrives in Moscow for talks with Putin on Syria
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has arrived in Moscow in an attempt to overcome growing differences between the two countries over Syria.
Turkey wants Russia o end support for Assad's forces in Idlib province.
Last week, Erdogan warned that Syrian government offensives in Idlib on armed groups of Assad's opponents posed a threat to Turkey's national security.
Last September, an agreement was signed in Sochi between Moscow and Ankara, which prevented the Assad regime's offensive in Idlib province. On Monday, August 27, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov supported the current offensive in Idlib, noting that Turkey could not contain the rebels, as stipulated by the Sochi agreements.
Erdogan visited Moscow on April 8 to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss, among other things, the situation in Syria, the supply of S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems to Turkey, and the construction of the Turkish Stream (TurkStream) gas pipeline.
Turkey is a member of NATO, its relations with Russia have historically been tense. But Moscow and Ankara have established strong economic ties since the end of the Cold War and have come together in recent years.
The United States and Turkey support various anti-government groups in Syria's eight-year civil war.
The U.S. military is supporting Syrian Kurdish fighters in the north of the country in their fight against Islamic State group extremists. Ankara considers Syrian Kurds terrorists linked to Kurdish separatists operating in Turkey and has vowed to destroy them.