MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The meeting between the chief of the Russian army's General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov and Turkish military chief Gen. Hulusi Akar on Thursday in Ankara facilitated bilateral dialogue on peace efforts in war-torn Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
"The talks allowed the sides to bring together their views on the situation in Syria and the series of measures necessary to maintain the cessation of hostilities," the ministry said in statement.
Earlier in the day, the Turkish military positively assessed the meeting of the army chiefs, the first such a meeting in 11 years. According to the source in the military, the meeting gave an opportunity to reach more consensus on the Middle East issues.
Gerasimov’s visit which was slated for August 26 was postponed after Ankara launched operation Euphrates Shield in northern Syria.
Moscow and Ankara launched reconciliation efforts this summer following the November 2015 downing of Russia’s Su-24 combat jet by Turkey. In June, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan apologized in a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin for the incident, offering condolences to the family of the killed pilot.
