Turkey's Agreements With Russia, US On Syria Are Independent - Erdogan Administration

Muhammad Irfan Published October 23, 2019 | 01:20 AM

ANKARA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2019) The memorandum on the withdrawal of Kurdish self-defense forces from the Turkish-Syrian border signed by Moscow and Ankara on Tuesday does not correlate with agreements reached earlier by Ankara and Washington on the same issue, Turkey's Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said.

"Today's agreement with Russia is independent of the Turkey-US deal, under which all PKK/YPG terrorists are required to leave the safe zone," Altun wrote in his Twitter blog.

�Following talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a Russian-Turkish memorandum was signed on Tuesday in Russia's Sochi, which stipulates that within 150 hours Kurdish militia would be withdrawn to a distance of 30 kilometers (18.

6 miles) from the border with Turkey to the west and east of the Operation Peace Spring zone.

In addition, starting from midday on October 23, units of the Russian military police and the Syrian border service will be deployed on the Syrian side of the Syrian-Turkish border to facilitate the withdrawal of Kurdish forces and their weaponry from the border.

After that, the Russian and Turkish military will begin joint patrols to a depth of 10 kilometers from the Syria-Turkish border to the west and east of the Operation Peace Spring zone, except for the city of Qamishli.