Russia tells Turkey to do more to clear Idlib of fighters

MOSCOW: Russia would like Turkey to do more to tackle militants in Syria’s Idlib province and fulfil promises it made as part of a deal with Moscow last year, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday. Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to meet the leaders of Turkey and Iran next week at a summit in the southern Russian city of Sochi where they are expected to discuss Syria. Meanwhile, work to implement an agreement between Turkey and the United States over the Syrian town of Manbij has recently accelerated, Turkey’s foreign minister said on Wednesday, adding that Kurdish YPG remained inside the town. “The process in Manbij has sped up despite the weather conditions but the road map should have been completed by now and the reason it hasn’t been is the United States,” Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told a press conference in Washington. — AFP