Russia appeals Turkiye to not 'destabilise' situation in Syria

Russia on Friday made an appeal to Turkiye not to "destabilise" Syria with military attacks in days leading up to meet between Russia President Vladimir Putin and and Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Turkiye has legitimate concerns for security reasons, which we, of course, take into account," said Dmitry Peskov as he addressed reporters.

"It is very important not to allow any action that could lead to destabilisation of the situation in Syria, or that could jeopardize the territorial and political integrity of Syria," he added.

The meeting between Putin and Erdogan will take place in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi on Friday (August 5). Pescov said Syria will be on the agenda of the talks.

Turkiye has been threatening for months that it would launch an operation against Kurdish fighters in Syria.

At a summit in Teheran last month, Putin expressed Russia's opposition to Erdogan's planned offensive. 

Russia and Turkey are two major international players in Syria, a country torn apart by war since 2011, in which Moscow backed Damascus and Ankara the opposition groups. 

During their meeting on Friday, the two leaders will also discuss Ukraine, where Moscow has been conducting what it calls a special military operation since February.

(With inputs from agencies)

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