Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan began a one-on-one meeting in Istanbul in the presence of translators.
The conversation takes place in a closed to the press mode.
Before the start of negotiations, Erdogan met Putin in front of the Halich congress center.
Together they went up to the second floor – into the hall, where the conversation of the two presidents takes place.
It is expected that, as necessary, relevant ministers from the delegations of the two countries will be involved in the negotiations.
The Russian delegation at these negotiations is, in particular, represented by the assistant to the head of state, Yuri Ushakov, the president’s special envoy for the Syrian settlement, Alexander Lavrentyev, energy minister Alexander Novak, defense minister Sergei Shoigu, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, and the head of Rosatom a.
The Kremlin’s press service previously reported that Putin plans to discuss with Erdogan the further development of Russian-Turkish cooperation and international issues, including the situation in Syria and Libya.
In turn, Erdogan stated that he intends to discuss with the Russian head of state measures to achieve a ceasefire in Idlib and the implementation of the Russian-Turkish memorandum on Syria.
A spokesman for the Turkish president, Ibrahim Kalin, said that Putin and Erdogan will also affect the escalation of tension between the United States and Iran after the assassination of General Kassem Suleimani.
After the talks, the presidents will take part in the official launch of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline.