Col. Gen. Leonid Ivashov revealed on Monday that a Russian military delegation would travel to Ankara to pressure Turkey into respecting Syria’s sovereignty.
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Ivashov said “the Russian military has a clear goal of guaranteeing Syria’s sovereignty and demanding that Turkey respect it unconditionally.’’
He added that the delegation would take a tough line in the negotiations with the Turkish military.
He noted that Russia and Turkey used to be partners in political talks on Syria but never evolved into military allies.
The military talks follow a summit in Moscow earlier between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Tayyip Erdogan.
It led to a ceasefire in Idlib and an agreement to jointly patrol a major Syrian highway running along the border with Turkey.
The delegates are expected to come to the Turkish capital on Tuesday.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said they would discuss joint patrols in Syria’s restive Idlib region, starting on Sunday.
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