Russia and US meet over rival factions fighting Isil

THE heads of the Russian, Turkish and US armed forces have met in southern Turkey to iron out tensions between factions fighting against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, General Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the Russian general staff, and General Hulusi Akar, who heads the general staff of the Turkish armed forces, met in Antalya yesterday morning to “to discuss issues of security in Syria and Iraq”, the Russian ministry of defence said.

There are mounting tensions around the northern Syrian town of Manbij, where troops from all three countries are now involved in a standoff following clashes between Turkish and Kurdish-led forces.

“There is a need for an effective coordination in the efforts to clear Syria of all terror groups because so many countries are involved there,” Binali Yildirim, the Turkish prime minister, said. “If we cannot establish coordination the risk of a conflict that we would not desire can emerge. That’s the real aim of the meeting,” he added.

Fighting broke out between Turkish-backed rebels of the Free Syrian Army and the mostly Kurdish USbacked Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) who control Manbij last week. US armoured vehicles began patrolling the town and surrounding villages over the weekend in a bid to curb the violence.

Earlier, Russian-backed Syrian government forces occupied several nearby villages after the SDF-affiliated Manbij Military Council asked them to form a buffer zone between the town and Turkish-backed rebels in al-Bab, 25 miles to the southwest.

The meeting continues today.