MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2018) Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet in Sochi on Monday, where they will discuss the situation in Syria's Idlib province, one of the remaining pockets of insurgency in the Arab republic.
Under the ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government troops and armed opposition, military activities in the Idlib de-escalation zone are prohibited. However, militant groups continue their attacks against the Syrian government forces, with a rise in the number of ceasefire breaches and signs of militants' preparation of staged chemical weapons attacks registered by the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation.
The tense situation is exacerbated by powerful information campaign against the Syrian government forces' potential operation in the region, with Western countries citing humanitarian concerns and threatening Damascus with action in case it launches a "reckless" operation in the region.
The meeting comes a little over a week after the Russia-Turkey-Iran summit in Tehran, where the ceasefire guarantor states focused on the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone and ways to minimize risks for civilian population related to the counterterrorism fight.
During the summit, the leaders of Syrian ceasefire guarantor states � Putin, Erdogan and their Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani � reiterated the commitment to continuing their cooperation until the complete defeat of terrorism and establishment of peace in Syria.
The summit resulted in the adoption of the Tehran Declaration, but the leaders argued whether it would be necessary to incorporate the provision on a truce in Idlib in the document.
Erdogan, in particular, spoke in favor of a special provision on a truce in the region.
"Attacks on Idlib by the Syrian regime worsen the situation in the region. These attacks pose risks to the political settlement in Syria. It is vitally important to preserve Idlib's status as a de-escalation zone. Any wrong steps in this direction will be felt everywhere. The problem should be resolved in the spirit of Astana," the president said.
Putin supported Erdogan's call for the ceasefire but stressed that the ceasefire guarantors could not speak for militants and terrorists not present at the talks.
As a result, the three presidents opted against the truce provision and instead called on the militants in Idlib to arrange a truce, stressing that solving the problem with terrorists in the area is the key to establishing peace in the country.
According to the United Nations, Idlib is the base for approximately 10,000 members of the Nusra Front and Al Qaeda terrorist groups (both banned in Russia). However, it also home to a large civilian population, which puts the humanitarian issue at heart of any counterterrorism plans in the region.
During a meeting with German counterpart Heiko Maas on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov refuted statements alleging the launch of a large-scale offensive by the Syrian government forces to bring the Idlib province back under the government control.
"What is now being presented as the beginning of the offensive by the Syrian troops with Russian support is an untrue representation of the facts. Both the Syrian troops and us are only responding to the attacks from the Idlib zone," Lavrov said.
He indicated that terrorists controlling Idlib were carrying out attacks on the Syrian government forces with the help of resources that they were receiving from outside of Syria. According to Lavrov, the situation in the region is being further complicated by the fact that the terrorists use the civilians residing in the area as a human shield.
He stressed that Russia would create humanitarian corridors in Idlib, and make every effort to prevent civilians from suffering.
CONCERNS OVER POSSIBLE CHEMICAL PROVOCATION
Along with powerful information campaign against Damascus' potential operation in Idlib, there is a serious threat of a possible chemical weapons provocation in the region.
On September 11, the Russian Defense Ministry said, citing the province's residents, that the filming of a chemical weapons provocation had begun in the settlement of Jisr al-Shughur. The statement came in the wake of earlier warnings voiced by Russian officials, who, citing sources, said that militants in Idlib were preparing the false-flag chemical weapons attack to frame the government forces and spark a US-led military intervention in Syria.
The situation seems even more dangerous amid the western countries' claims about Damascus' readiness to carry out a chemical attack.
Commenting on the issue, Lavrov said that such claims were "an invitation for the extremists to stage another attack."
"When [the West] claims that the Syrian government is going to use chemical weapons and then France, the United Kingdom and the United States would deliver a crushing blow on [the Syrian] 'regime,' as they call it, it is, in fact, an invitation for the extremists to stage another attack," he said on Wednesday.
Moscow has repeatedly warned the West against using force again Syria, as was the case in April, when the United States, United Kingdom and France had hit what they called Damascus' chemical weapons facilities with over 100 missiles in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack on civilians in the city of Duma.
On Saturday, head of Russia's center for Syrian reconciliation Lt. Gen. Vladimir Savchenko announced that militants of the Tahrir al-Sham terror group (formerly Jabhat Fatah al Sham terror organization, banned in Russia) had delivered containers with chlorine to the settlement of Basankul located in Idlib province.
The province was seized by militants of the very same Jabhat al-Nusra group (outlawed in Russia) back in 2015.
