Turkish-Russian 'strategic ties' fail stress test on Syria's Idlib
The recent Tehran summit placed a spotlight on differences between Ankara and Moscow over Syria, leaving the Turkish president rattled.
Much of the world focused its attention on the Tehran summit last week between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in the hope that the three “Astana partners” could prevent a bloodbath in Idlib, in northwestern Syria.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu issued promising statements before the Sept. 7 summit, expressing his belief that a crisis would be averted in the last opposition stronghold.
The summit not only failed to achieve this, but also highlighted Turkish and Russian differences over Syria.
This comes at a time when Ankara and Moscow are keen to highlight their burgeoning political, economic and military ties, as their relations with the United States and Europe continue to spiral downward.
