Türkiye urges Russia to fulfill pledges on YPG/PKK withdrawal from Syria

ANKARA (AA) – Türkiye and Russia have held political consultations in Istanbul on Thursday and Friday, and addressed regional issues as Ankara reiterated its expectation from Moscow on its pledges regarding the withdrawal of Kurdish nationalist PKK/YPG militants from Syria.

Delegations headed by Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal and his Russian counterpart Sergey Vershinin addressed bilateral ties, UN reform, the Black Sea grain export deal, as well as regional issues such as Syria, Libya, and Palestine, according to a Turkish Foreign Ministry statement.

During the talks, Onal noted the importance of maintaining Syria’s territorial integrity and political unity as well as the necessity of reaching a political solution to the ongoing crisis.

Türkiye further reiterated its determination in its efforts against the PKK/YPG/PYD and said it expected Russia to fulfill the provisions of the 2019 memorandum of understanding on PKK/YPG presence in Syria.

Last month, Türkiye launched Operation Claw-Sword in northern Iraq and Syria — a cross-border aerial campaign against the PKK/YPG — which has presence across the Iraqi and Syrian borders which is considered a security threat by Turkiye.