Erdogan Intends to Discuss Russian Military Operation in Syria With Putin

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to talk about Russian airstrikes in Syria with President Vladimir Putin at a meeting, he said Saturday.

ANKARA (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Russia launched precision airstrikes on Islamic State (IS) positions in Syria at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

"I will definitely meet with Putin to discuss the situation in Syria and express my concern on this matter. Since our countries are friends, I will ask him to reconsider Russia's actions in Syria," Erdogan told Al Jazeera news network in an interview.

He added that Russian airstrikes are aimed at the Syrian opposition.

On Friday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry released a joint statement from seven countries, namely, France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the United States, calling on Russia to stop airstrikes against the Syrian opposition and civilians and to focus its efforts on the fight against the IS.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the targets for the strikes were chosen based on intelligence, including air surveillance, gathered and verified by Russia and Syria. Syrian Ambassador to Russia Riad Haddad confirmed that Syrian Army strikes, supported by the Russian Air Force, were carried out against armed terrorist organizations and not political opposition factions or civilians.