ANKARA, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Turkish and Russian troops conducted their 13th joint patrol along a key highway in northwestern Idlib province of Syria, the Turkish defense ministry said on Thursday.
"Within the framework of TUR-RF Agreement/Protocol, the 13th TUR-RF Combined Land Patrol on M-4 Highway in Idlib was conducted with the participation of land and air elements," the ministry tweeted.
On March 5, Turkey and Russia sealed a deal to maintain a temporary cease-fire for "all military actions along the line of contact in the Idlib de-escalation area" and envisaged the establishment of a security corridor six km to the north and six km to the south of the M4 highway, after nearly 60 Turkish soldiers were killed in escalated tension between the Syrian government and Turkish troops in the region.
Joint Turkish-Russian patrols began on March 15 along the M4 highway as part of the deal.
The key M4 highway is about 30 km away from the southern border of Turkey.
On Wednesday, a Turkish soldier was killed after an explosion along the key M4 highway. The cause of the explosion had yet to been determined, said the defense ministry on Wednesday.
