Russia calls on Turkey to show ‘restraint’ in Syria

Russia on Tuesday said it hoped Turkey would exercise “restraint” and refrain from “any excessive use of force” in Syria, where Ankara has carried out air strikes and is threatening to launch a "ground offensive" (invasion) against Kurdish fighters.

“We hope to convince our Turkish colleagues to refrain from resorting to excessive use of force on Syrian territory” to “avoid the escalation of tensions,” Alexander Lavrentyev, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy on Syria, told reporters in Astana.