Syrian Astana talks achieved "positive results" - Turkish FM

ANKARA, Oct 27 (KUNA) -- Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Friday the Syrian talks in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan, have achieved "positive results" which have materialized on the ground in Syria.
"Around this time in 2016, we were waking up to see photos of buildings destroying by shelling in Syria's northern city of Aleppo," Cavusoglu said in a meeting in Manucipality of Gaziantep, southeast Turkey.
He said the ceasefire was holding in Syria, and Turkey was doubling efforts to achieve political stability in order to end the crisis.
The de-escalating zones aimed at halting hostilities between the opposition and the Syrian regime in order to speed up the political process, he added.
on Iraq, Cavusoglu said Turkey was waiting to see if the border crossings would be handed over without any clashes.
He termed as "historic" the Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi's visit to Ankara.
He said Iraq and Turkey adopted important decisions during Abadi's visit, which would promote bilateral relations and cooperation. (end) rs.bs