Russian FM insists on halting Turkey's aggression in Syria

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has called for a halt in Turkey’s attempts to violate Syria’s territorial integrity in talks with his American counterpart, John Kerry.

Lavrov accused Ankara of “provocative” measures against neighboring Syria, describing them as “inadmissible,” Russian foreign ministry announced in a statement detailing the Saturday phone conversation.

"Provocative Turkish acts that violate the Syrian Arab Republic's territorial integrity are inadmissible," Lavrov said.

The two also discussed military coordination in a bid to ensure a truce in Syria, where government troops continue to battle a foreign-backed terrorists, seeking to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

Lavrov and Kerry further discussed humanitarian aid issues and the planned cessation of hostilities across Syria, "with the exception of fighting terrorist groups."

"It was confirmed that the establishment of mechanisms to reach set goals requires military coordination," read the statement without elaborating on the nature of such collaboration.

Saudi Arabia, the key backer of terrorists in Syria, has expressed support for equipping anti-Syria militants with surface-to-air missiles, claiming the move would shift the “balance of power” in favor of the terrorists.

"We believe that introducing surface-to-air missiles in Syria is going to change the balance of power on the ground," said Saudi Foreign Minister Adel el-Jubeir (pictured above) as quoted by German weekly Der Spiegel, which published an interview with him on Saturday.

The developments followed the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting on February 11 that led to a concluding communique urging speedy humanitarian access to all besieged areas in Syria and setting a one-week deadline for efforts to establish "cessation of hostilities" in the war-torn country.

The ISSG was set up in November, shortly after the beginning of the Syria peace talks in Vienna as an international format aimed at resolving the internal crisis in Syria. The format currently involves Russia, the Arab League nations, the European Union, as well as Iran, China, Turkey, the US and the United Nations.

The development came following the Friday rejection by the US and France of a Russia-drafted resolution at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council aimed at halting cross-border shelling as well as preventing a foreign ground intrusion against the Syrian territory.

Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Faysal Mekdad reacted strongly to the rejection of the draft resolution, saying it reflected continued backing of terrorist forces in his country by Western countries.

Syrian authorities have also slammed recent Turkish artillery shelling of its territory as an "outrageous violation" of international law, accusing Turkey of committing “crimes” against Syrian by shelling areas in the northern Aleppo province.

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