Debris are seen in the Maarat al-Numan city, Idlib Province, Syria, on Jan. 30, 2020. (Photo by Maher/Xinhua)
"The statement about the shelling of the Syrian government troops by units of the Turkish Armed Forces and the losses among the Syrian military was not true," Russian military said.
MOSCOW, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Russian military on Friday refuted Ankara's claim that Turkish forces killed dozens of Syrian government troops in the northwestern province of Idlib.
"The statement about the shelling of the Syrian government troops by units of the Turkish Armed Forces and the losses among the Syrian military was not true," said the Russian Center for the Reconciliation of the warring parties in Syria.
"Such a statement only aggravates the situation and may lead to hasty decisions that do not meet mutual interests of Russia and Turkey," it warned in a statement.
Earlier on Friday, the Turkish Defense Ministry said 63 Syrian government troops had been killed in Idlib in a Turkish offensive, according to information from various sources.
Tensions in Idlib have flared up recently as the Syrian government forces, which are launching wide-scale offensives against the rebels in the area, exchanged fire with Turkish troops, causing multiple deaths on both sides. ■
