Russia accuses Turkish troops of embedding with ‘terrorists’ in Idlib

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Turkish troops targeted by Syrian regime forces on Thursday were embedded with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) jihadists, Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Friday. 

As tensions escalate between opposition-supporter Turkey and regime-backer Russia, Moscow has deployed two frigates armed with cruise missiles to the Syrian Mediterranean coast. 

NATO officials will meet later on Friday to discuss the situation.

On Thursday, at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed and scores more wounded in an air strike on their positions in Syria’s northwest province of Idlib, according to Turkish officials.

Turkey believes the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad was behind the attack. Ankara has since launched retaliatory strikes with drones and artillery against Syrian army positions, killing 16 regime soldiers, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

“Turkish military, who were in the terrorist units’ battle formations, came under Syrian troops’ fire near the inhabited community of Behun on February 27,” the Russian defense ministry said in a statement. 

In televised remarks, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar rejected the Russian claim.

“I want to state that during this attack, there were no armed groups around our military units,” said Akar.

The strikes took place “despite coordination with Russian officials” and the bombardment continued despite “warning” of the Turkish troops’ presence, he added.

Under the 2018 Sochi deal with Russia, Turkey was supposed to establish a de-confliction zone around the last rebel-holdout of Idlib – home to millions of Syrians displaced from regime areas. Under the deal, Turkey established 12 military observation posts inside Idlib.

However, near the end of 2019, the Russian-backed regime launched a new offensive to retake the province.

The province is dominated by HTS, a coalition of Islamist armed groups, dominated by the former Syrian affiliate of al-Qaeda, Jabhat al-Nusra. 

Fearing a new mass influx of Syrian refugees crossing into Turkey, Ankara sent troops and military hardware to shore up its Syrian rebel allies and stall the regime advance.

According to the Russian defense ministry, HTS was going to “attempt to launch a large-scale offensive” in Idlib against Syrian government positions.

Although the Russian air force has pounded targets inside Idlib in recent weeks, including civilian infrastructure, Moscow insists it did not conduct Thursday’s air strike which killed the Turkish troops. 

“Aircraft of Russia’s Aerospace Forces were not used near the inhabited community of Behun,” the defense ministry said.

Russian officials said they ordered the Syrian military to stop firing after receiving information about Turkish casualties, according to Russian wire service Interfax.

The agency said two Russian frigates, the Admiral Makarov and the Admiral Grigorovich, carrying Kalibr cruise missiles are now on their way to the Syrian Mediterranean coast.

NATO meets

Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday to discuss the Sochi deal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

 “Today, a phone call between presidents Putin and Erdogan has been held at the initiative of the Turkish leader. The talks were detailed. They discussed the need to do everything possible to implement the original agreements on the de-escalation zone [in Idlib],” Lavrov said, according to TASS. 

The Kremlin press service further elaborated that the two leaders have not ruled out a face-to-face meeting, with AFP reporting that they may meet in Moscow next week, according to a Friday evening statement from the Russian government. 

"A possibility of a meeting at the highest level in Moscow on March 5 or 6 is being worked out at the moment," said presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

“Both sides highlighted the need for additional measures to stabilize the situation in northwestern Syria,” it said.

Fearing the situation could escalate further, NATO held a meeting of its council on Friday, including the ambassadors of 29 member states, following a request from Turkey.

Speaking in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg threw his support behind Turkey and appealed for calm. 

“I call on them to stop their offensive, to respect international law, and to back UN efforts for peaceful solution. This dangerous situation must be de-escalated, and we urge an immediate return to the 2018 ceasefire,” Stoltenberg told a press conference. 

The NATO chief said work should be done to avoid deepening the “horrendous” humanitarian situation in Idlib and to allow aid agencies access. 

“Today’s meeting is a clear sign of solidarity with Turkey. Turkey is a valued NATO ally, and Turkey is the NATO ally most affected by the terrible conflict in Syria, which has suffered the most terrorist attacks and which hosts millions of refugees,” Stoltenberg said.

NATO will assist Turkey by “augmenting” its air defenses, he added.

Turkish officials have called for a no-fly-zone over the region.

“The international community must act to protect civilians and impose a no-fly-zone,” Fahrettin Altun, communications director at the Turkish presidency, said on Twitter.

Russia’s Duma Defense Committee warned that any NATO interference in Syria would be “inadmissible”, according to Interfax. 

Last updated at 7.28 PM