Russian foreign, defense ministers to visit Turkey to discuss Syria, Libya
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu shakes hand with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, January 2, 2019. (AA Photo)


Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu will visit Turkey Sunday to discuss the situation in Libya and Syria.

While Turkey backs the U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya, Russian mercenaries have been fighting in ranks of renegade commander Khalifa Haftar. Russian government previously denied reports claiming their support to Haftar’s side.

In March, the GNA launched Operation Peace Storm to counter attacks on the capital and recently regained strategic locations, including al-Watiya air base and the strategic city of Tarhuna.

In March, Russia and Turkey reached an agreement to halt the violence in Idlib and stem the flow of displacements as tensions soared. As part of the agreement, all military activities would end in Idlib and a security corridor would be established 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) deep to the north and to the south of the M4 highway.