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MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Chief of the General Staff of the armed forces Valery Gerasimov and his U.S. counterpart Joseph Dunford have discussed the situation in Syria by phone, RIA news agency reported on Saturday, citing the Russian Defence Ministry.

Details of the call have not been disclosed.

The talks took place after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier on Saturday a military operation in Syria’s Kurdish-controlled Afrin region had begun after cross-border shelling by the Turkish army.