Turkish, Russian defense ministers discuss Syria

Turkey's national defense minister met on Saturday with his Russian counterpart in Istanbul ahead of a four-way Syria summit to be held in the city on Saturday, Anadolu Agency reports.

Turkey's Hulusi Akar and Russia's Sergey Shoigu exchanged views on the latest situation in Idlib, Syria as well as regional security during their talks, according to Turkish defense sources who asked not to be named, due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The summit on Syria, hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, will see the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Staffan de Mistura, the UN special Syria envoy, will also attend the summit.