Russian, Turkish Forces Resume Joint Patrols In Northeastern Syria

Sergei Novikov/TASS

The Russian Military Police and the Turkish Army resumed join patrols in northeastern Syria. The patrols were frozen by the Turkish side, when the Syrian Army achieved a breakthrough success in the battle against Turkish-backed militants in Greater Idlib. Ankara likely did this in order to show Moscow own dissatisfaction with the Russian support to the Syrian advance in Idlib. The resumption of the joint patrols likely indicates that the Turkish side has accepted the new reality in Greater Idlib.

Russia’s news agency TASS reports (source):

Russian and Turkish servicemen conducted a regular joint patrol mission in Syria’s al-Hasakah governorate, Oleg Zhuravlev, chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the Opposing Parties in Syria, told reporters on Monday.

The mission was conducted under the Russian-Turkish memorandum of understanding of October 22, 2019.

“A joint Russian-Turkish patrol mission was conducted along the route Qamishli-Sheirek-Dellik-Kasrah-Arada-Qebira-Kasrah-Tawrat-Sh awkat-Dellik-Sheirek-Qamishli in the al-Hasakah governorate,” he said.

Units of the Russian military police also carried out patrolling in the Aleppo and Raqqa governorates. Russia’s air taskforce conducted an aerial patrol mission from the Qamishli airfield.

“The patrolling missions were conducted in accordance with the plans. No incidents were reported during the mission,” he noted.

During the day, officers of the Russian reconciliation center conducted one humanitarian operation and delivered about one tonne of food products to the settlement of Hajj Igab in the Raqqa governorate.

Zhuravlev also said that illegal armed groups continued to violate the ceasefire in the Idlib de-escalation zone. Thus, twenty-four shelling attacks were reported during the day.

The Russian reconciliation center continues to fulfill assigned tasks after the completion of the military campaign in Syria. The center’s officers regularly travel around the country’s liberated areas to assess the humanitarian situation. The main efforts of the Russian military are now focused on assistance to the refugees returning to their homes and evacuation of civilians from de-escalation zones.