Turkey, Russia Agree Syria Ceasefire from Midnight

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Turkey and Russia reached agreement on a ceasefire in Syria's northwestern Idlib province to take effect at midnight, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday after talks with counterpart Vladimir Putin in Moscow. 

"At 00.01 tonight, as in, from midnight, the ceasefire will be put in place," Erdogan said at a news  conference after the summit.

"We agreed a joint document," Putin said, adding that he hoped it would "serve as a good basis for ending fighting in the Idlib de-escalation zone and ending the suffering of the civilian population." 

Erdogan added that Turkey reserves the right to "retaliate with all its strength against any attack" by Damascus despite the new ceasefire. 

"The regime... is the one to blame for the breakdown of the (2018 Sochi) agreement," Erdogan said.