Turkish, Russian military chiefs to meet on Syria

Turkey and Russia’s top generals are to meet in Ankara on Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar will meet Gen. Valery Gerasimov to discuss Syria and also to talk about military cooperation, a spokesman said.

Although Russia is one of the main backers of Syrian regime leader Bashar al-Assad while NATO member Turkey backs opposition forces such as the Free Syrian Army (FSA), both sides are targeting Daesh terror group in Syria.

Operation Euphrates Shield to remove Daesh from the northern border region has seen Turkey back FSA forces on the ground with special forces, tanks, artillery and airpower.

A US-Russia-brokered cease-fire that began Monday evening is largely holding across Syria and has been extended for a further 48 hours.

Relations between Ankara and Moscow have been repaired since Turkey shot down a Russian warplane over the Syrian border in November last year for violating Turkish airspace, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meeting President Vladimir Putin on 9 August in St. Petersburg and Russia lifting sanctions against Turkey and restoring economic ties.