Türkiye, Russia resume joint ground patrols in northern Syria

By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) – Türkiye and Russia resumed their joint ground patrols, which were halted last October for security reasons, the Turkish National Defense Ministry said on Friday.

“Until Oct. 5, 2023, 344 joint ground patrol activities had been conducted. However, patrol activities were halted due to the security situation in the region.

“The joint ground patrol activity conducted by Türkiye and the Russian Federation has been resumed on Aug. 22, 2024, with 4 vehicles (2 Pars, 2 Kirpi-2) and 24 personnel participating in the eastern part of the Operation Peace Spring zone,” the ministry said in a statement

The joint ground patrol, according to the statement, are conducted in the Peace Spring Operation Area's west and east in accordance with the Sochi agreement signed between Ankara and Moscow on Oct. 22, 2019.

The first such joint ground patrol activity was carried out on Nov. 1, 2019.

“The purpose of continuing the joint ground patrol activities is to ensure the security of our country's borders and the civilian population in the region, establish stability in northern Syria, identify control points, headquarters, and military structures belonging to the PKK/YPG-SDF terrorist organization that must exit the region according to the agreements Türkiye made with the US and the Russian Federation, and to display Turkish-Russian cooperation in combating terrorism,” the readout said.