Militants, moderates still not separated in Syria’s Idlib – Moscow

The separation of radical militants from moderate opposition groups in the demilitarized zone in Syria’s Idlib region has not yet been successfully achieved, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday. The process, which was launched as part of a deal between Turkey and Russia in September, has not been successful despite efforts by Ankara, she noted. Syrian Ambassador to Russia, Riyad Haddad, said on Thursday that the upcoming meeting on Syria in Astana, Kazakhstan to be held in the near future will be dedicated, in particular, to the implementation of the Russian-Turkish agreements on Idlib, TASS reported. On Tuesday, Syria’s Minister of State for National Reconciliation Affairs Ali Haidar said that it was still premature to talk about a reconciliation process in the Idlib province since the situation in the militant-held region remains “fragile,” according to Sputnik.