A new route has been charted on the map of patrols conducted by Russian and Turkish servicemen in Syria, according to Aleksandr Shcherbitsky, chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the Opposing Parties in Syria.

“For the first time, a joint Russian-Turkish patrol reached the village of Jennakra in Idlib province, with the itinerary of 40 kilometers,” he said. “Two BTR-82A armored personnel carriers and a Tigr armored vehicle took part in the joint patrol from the Russian side,” TASS quoted him as saying.

He said that on Wednesday, the 16th joint Russian-Turkish mission patrolled the area along the M4 highway in the Idlib de-escalation zone. The highway lies between the cities of Aleppo and Latakia. The joint Russian-Turkish convoy was backed by unmanned aerial vehicles of the Russian Aerospace Forces.

During a phone call on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan underlined the need to implement agreements between Moscow and Ankara on the Idlib de-escalation zone.