Turkey seeks talks with Syria regime via Russia: reports

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reportedly approached his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to propose a "trilateral mechanism" to establish contacts with the Syrian regime.

Erdogan told reporters after a trip to Turkmenistan that he offered to Putin initiating a series of meetings between Turkey, Russia, and Syria to revisit long-strained relations with Damascus, broadcaster Haberturk reported.

Turkey froze ties with its neighbour, Syria, following the Assad regime's brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.

The country has since hosted millions of Syrian refugees fleeing regime assaults, hosted leading opposition figures, and backed rebel groups, some of which have taken part in Ankara-backed offensives inside Syria.

The mechanism would mark a major shift in relations between the two sides and follows recent contact between Syrian and Turkish intelligence leaders.

"First our intelligence agencies, then defence ministers, and then foreign ministers (of the three countries) could meet. After their meetings we as the leaders may come together. I offered it to Mr Putin and he has a positive view on it," Erdogan was cited as saying. 

Turkish forces have been pummelling Kurdish positions near the border with artillery fire and drone strikes since November 20 in response to the bomb blast.

Erdogan has been threatening to launch a new incursion into northern Syria to push out Kurdish forces he blames for a November bomb blast that killed six people in Istanbul.

Earlier this month, he told Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that it was imperative the Kremlin "clear" Kurdish forces from northern Syria.

(Reuters)