Russia, Turkey to restore dialogue on Syria: Lavrov

PARIS

Russia and Turkey could soon resume dialogue regarding the Syrian crisis, as part of the normalization of relations between the two countries, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a joint press conference with his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault in Paris, Lavrov said there was a "window of normalizing contact" with Turkey after Ankara presented condolences to the family of the Russian pilot whose plane was shot down for violating Turkish airspace in November 2015.

“I believe we and our Turkish partners will resume cooperation to solve the Syrian crisis,” Lavrov said.

He said he would meet Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu at the Black Sea Economic Cooperation conference in Russia’s Sochi on Friday.

"We had until recently very close contacts with Turkey on the Syrian issue, but they were interrupted for the reasons that we all know," Lavrov said.

The statement comes following phone talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday.

The two leaders discussed bilateral relations and cooperation on regional issues and humanitarian crises and agreed to restore cooperation, including in the spheres of trade, tourism and the fight against terrorism.

Both French and Russian foreign ministers also condemned Tuesday night's deadly terror attack at Istanbul Ataturk Airport, in which more than 40 people, including foreigners, were killed and hundreds of others were injured.

Lavrov and Ayrault agreed on the need to jointly fight against terrorism.

"At the moment we want to express our solidarity with the Turkish people, with all our friends, to express our sympathy and condolences to the relatives of the victims […] Boosting international cooperation is needed to combat terrorism," Ayrault said.