FILE PHOTO: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of his ruling AK Party during a meeting at the Parliament in Ankara, Turkey, February 19, 2020. Turkish Presidential Press Office/Handout via REUTERS
February 26, 2020
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey plans to push Syrian government forces away from its military observation posts in northwest Syria’s Idlib region by end-February, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, despite advances by the Russian-backed government forces.
In a speech to AK Party lawmakers, Erdogan said he hoped the issue of using air space in northwest Syria’s Idlib will be resolved soon. Russia controls the air space and has been bombing Turkey-backed rebels on a daily basis in support of an offensive by the Syrian government forces.
(Reporting by Nevzat Devranoglu, Ece Toksabay and Tuvan Gumrukcu; Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Dominic Evans)
