PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on Monday Osman Orsal/Reuters)
LATEST
- Pro-Assad Forces Regain Another Village in Northern Hama
- UK Government Steps Back From No-Fly Zones
- Rebels Claim Aleppo Fightback, Retaking Water Station
UPDATE 0915 GMT: Russian President Vladimir Putin has postponed a planned visit to France, after Paris led an effort in the UN Security Council for a resolution to stop Russian-regime bombing and renew aid to Syria’s largest city Aleppo.
Putin was due in France on October 19 for talks with French counterpart Francois Hollande. French Presidential sources announced the postponement.
On Monday, Hollande suggested Russia, who voted the Franco-Spanish resolution on Saturday, could face war crimes charges over the Aleppo bombardment.
ORIGINAL ENTRY: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has hosted Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for talks on Syria, as the two countries signed an agreement for the construction of a major undersea gas pipeline.
Putin’s visit is another sign of reconciliation following a rift over last November’s Turkish downing of a Russian warplane near the Turkish-Syrian border. Following Erdoğan’s journey to Moscow in early August, there was widespread speculation of a deal to allow both a Turkey military intervention alongside rebels in northern Syria three weeks later, and continued Russian bombing of opposition territory alongside a pro-Assad offensive to besiege and try to overrun opposition-held areas in Aleppo city.
“Today has been a full day with President Putin of discussing Russia-Turkish relations….I have full confidence that the normalization of Turkish-Russian ties will continue at a fast pace,” Erdoğan told a joint news conference on Monday.
The two leaders said they had agreed on the importance of delivering aid to Aleppo, whose opposition-held eastern sector has been encircled by Russian-backed Syrian forces for all but a short period since July.
“We have a common position that everything must be done to deliver humanitarian aid to Aleppo. The only issue is….ensuring the safety of aid delivery,” Putin said.
He declared, “Both Russia and Turkey stand for the earliest cessation of bloodshed in Syria. In Russia we think that the switch to a political settlement must happen as soon as possible. We suppose that everybody, who wants peace, should support this proposal.”
The statement helped offset pressure on Russia over its renewal of bombing of Syria’s largest city, beginning with the destruction of a UN aid convoy on September 19, hours after the Syrian military declared an end to the “freeze on hostilities” under a seven-day ceasefire arranged by the US and Moscow.
The Russians have been castigated by the US and European powers in the UN Security Council for airstrikes amounting to complicity in “war crimes” by the Assad regime, as more than 500 people were killed in two weeks. Moscow was forced to veto a Franco-Spanish resolution on Friday calling for a ceasefire, security for humanitarian aid, and suspension of military flights over the area.
See Syria Daily, Oct 9: Isolated Russia Vetoes UN Resolution for End to Aleppo Bombing
Russia is trying to shift attention from the proposal to end bombing and set up an effective no-fly zone by promoting a statement by UN envoy Staffan de Mistura that “about 900 former” members of JFS/Nusra could be given safe passage out of eastern Aleppo city.
Putin said yesterday, “Together with the Turkish president we agreed to do everything to support de Mistura’s initiative on the withdrawal of military units, which refuse to lay down their arms, from Aleppo in order to end violence.”
Deal to Boost Russian Energy Plans
Beyond Syria, the highlight of the meeting was the signature of the deal on the TurkStream undersea gas pipeline, allowing Moscow to strengthen its position in the European gas market and cut energy supplies via Ukraine.
The plan for TurkStream was promoted after Russia set aside plans to build the South Stream pipeline to Bulgaria due to opposition from the European Union.
Erdoğan also said plans for a Russian-built nuclear power plant in Turkey would be accelerated, while Putin said Moscow had decided to lift a ban on some food products from Ankara.
Pro-Assad Forces Regain Another Village in Northern Hama
Pro-Assad forces have gained another village in their counter-offensive in northern Hama Province.
The Syrian military and foreign allies occupied Kawkab on Tuesday.
The counter-offensive was checked on Monday, with the pro-Assad forces pushed out of the fortified village of Ma’an after briefly entering it. However, they regained the initiative on Tuesday morning.
The fightback took a series of villages last Friday. It is hoping to regain four towns captured by rebels since late August, bringing them within 10 km (6 miles) of Hama city.
UK Government Steps Back From No-Fly Zones
The UK Government has stepped back from any implementation of no-fly zones to protect civilians.
Speaking in an emergency Parliamentary debate, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he had “every sympathy” for the proposal, put forward by Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell.
However, Johnson said that no-fly zones were not possible without a willingness to shoot down warplanes and helicopters. He said he would consult people, including those involved in imposing no-fly zones over Iraq in the 1990s.
The Foreign Secretary suggested instead that war crimes might eventually be taken to the International Criminal Court and that demonstrations might be held outside the Russian Embassy.
Soon after Russia and the Assad regime resumed bombing of Aleppo on September 19, US Secretary of State John Kerry called for suspension of Russian and regime military overflights of areas of humanitarian need. However, Washington did not follow up after Damascus and Moscow rejected the suggestion as a breach of sovereignty.
France and Spain including the suspension of flights in their resolution to the UN Security Council, but Russia used its veto on Saturday to block further consideration.
Rebels Claim Aleppo Fightback, Retaking Water Station
Rebels are claiming a fightback after weeks of pro-Assad advance to the north of Aleppo city.
The rebel factions said they have regained the Suleiman al-Halabi water pumping station, near ongoing battles in the Bustan al-Basha district.
The factions said they restarted water to Aleppo residents after a 10-day break.
Two stations southwest of Aleppo were put out of action in late September, reportedly because of Russian-regime airstrikes that destroyed power lines supplying the facilities.
On the southwestern Aleppo front, pro-Assad forces are again trying to advance in the Sheikh Saeed district. Rebels say they regained an area lost to the offensive at dawn.
