Why Russia isn't bothered by US-Turkey agreement on Syria
Russia, which has been conducting its own whirlwind diplomacy this week, wasn't disturbed by the US-Turkey deal over northern Syria.
MOSCOW — In the past 24 hours Russia has patiently waited to see whether the US-Turkey “agreement” over the fate of Kurdish forces in the “safe zone” in northeastern Syria might cause any negative outcomes for Moscow's own ideas for fixing Syria's problems.
Following the seemingly intense discussions between Ankara and Washington on Oct. 17, Erdogan’s remarks Oct. 18 sounded rather reassuring for Moscow.
“Our aim is to reach a reconciliation with Russia about those matters that are reasonable and acceptable to everyone,” Erdogan told reporters about his Oct. 22 trip to Sochi for talks with Putin.
"Our goal is that PKK terrorists are cleared from the territories that are now under control of the Syrian regime. In this case, [even] if regime keeps control over Manbij we won’t have a reason to worry,” Erdogan said. The PKK is the Kurdistan Workers Party, which Turkey has been fighting for four decades.
