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ANKARA, Aug. 20-- A recent Russian-backed operation by the Syrian government forces in Idlib of Syria is directly relevant to the start of talks between the United States and Turkey to set up a safe zone in northeastern Syria, experts argued. On Monday, a Turkish military convoy was attacked on its way to an observation point in Idlib, where Turkish Defense Ministry claimed that three civilians were killed. A recent consensus between Ankara and Washington on a safe zone in the east of Euphrates could lead Russia to exert more pressure on Turkey on the issue of Idlib, said Serkan Demirtas, a columnist for Hurriyet Daily News. It was the first time that an airstrike was carried out on Turkish convoy despite Ankara had informed Moscow about its deployment of soldiers to the observation point, Demirtas said, noting that Turkey insisted that Moscow was aware of the attack. Monday's attack raises the question of whether or not Turkey and Russia would be able to carry on their cooperation on Idlib, he said, adding that tension between Ankara and Moscow has escalated due to Idlib and moves of the two countries will determine the future of the region. Naim Baburoglu, another analyst from Aydin University, agreed that Russia must have given a green light to the attack on Turkish convoy, adding that the move was a message from Moscow to Ankara that Russia and the Syrian government cannot be excluded from the safe zone deal. | 
