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Putin, Erdgogan vows to help end Syria war  

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has said a truce in Syria is on the whole being observed.

Putin in a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Moscow said that was cautiously optimistic about the prospects of a deal to end the six-year Syrian conflict.

Russia and Turkey, which back opposing sides in Syria’s war, co-brokered a ceasefire in December that helped reduce the scale of fighting between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition.

They also supported two rounds of talks this year between the government and the rebels, while a third set is scheduled for next week.

Putin said that due to the active action of Turkey and Russia the rival forces were brought together. “Due to our joint effort the Syrian ceasefire continues,”  Putin told reporters on Friday, hailing Ankara’s “exceptional cooperation” in keeping the truce.

Erdogan said that there are “no doubts” about the “very successful” Syria talks sponsored by the two countries, adding that Turkey was cooperating with Russia’s military.

The changing dynamics of the Syrian conflict have played a large role in the rapprochement between Russia and Turkey, but we should probably also look closer to home.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that it was in the days immediately following the attempted coup in Turkey that Erdogan had just survived that Ankara decided to recalibrate its foreign policy and warm relations both with Russia and Israel.