ANKARA: Turkiye’s defense ministry has said that Turkish and Russian troops in armored vehicles have restarted joint ground patrols in northeast Syria following operations were halted last year for security reasons.
According to Reuters, the joint ground patrol was relaunched on Thursday into the east of the “Operation Peace Spring” zone in northeast Syria, involving around four vehicles and 24 security personnel, according to the statement.
However, the ministry did not elaborate on the security matters that stopped joint patrol operations in October in 2023. A total of 344 joint patrols had been carried out in the region since 2019, the ministry added.
In 2019, Turkiye and its Syrian rebel allies started military operations in northeast Syria, dubbed “Operation Peace Spring,” aiming to drive Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
That year, Moscow and Ankara also agreed to carryout joint patrols in the region under an agreement struck by President Erdogan and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
The defense ministry further said that joint ground patrols will continue in the future in order to establish stability in northeast Syria, ensure security of Turkiye’s borders as well as demonstrate Turkish-Russian cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
