Putin sends Erdoğan his greetings for 2018

ANKARA

Russia and Turkey have created conditions for launching the political settlement of the Syrian conflict, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Dec. 30.

“By working closely together our countries have succeeded inpreventing the terrorist threat from spreading further across the Middle East,” Putin said in a New Year’s greeting message to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a Kremlin statement.

“In the outgoing year Russia and Turkey not only succeeded in putting their bilateral relations back on track, but also achieved substantial progress in enhancing their bilateral cooperation in many areas.

“In addition, Vladimir Putin confirmed his interest in continued constructive dialogue and proactive engagement on all matters on the bilateral,regional and international agendas,” the statement added.