MESOP NEWS : Differences remain between Ankara and Moscow over Syria / But repairing ties Moscow / Ankara

By Rudaw 3 hours ago – 22 July 2016 – ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—The official spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said that Russia and Turkey still have significant disagreements on how to settle the Syria crisis. “The issues that we notified UN Security Council about include supporting militants, transparency of the Turkish-Syrian border. They have not disappeared, they remain on the agenda,” she said, according to Russia’s state-run Tass news.

Turkey and Russia began repairing ties last month which had been badly strained after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane over its border with Syria last November. After Ankara expressed regret for the incident Russia agreed to lift sanctions against it and restore cordial relations. Zakharova claimed that Moscow is doing everything it can “to talk with [our] Turkish colleagues about the importance of working together at international platforms, especially in the framework of the Syria Support Group.”

“We will continue convincing Turkey that constructive work on Syrian settlement is necessary,” she added.  Russia and Turkey have been supporting opposite sides in the Syria war. Turkey has long armed groups in Syria’s northwest which are fighting the Syrian regime, while Russia has intervened directly on the side of that regime and helped turn the tide in its favor.   www.mesop.de