Erdogan says no 'full' agreement on Syria summit

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday there was no agreement yet for the leaders of Turkey, Russia, France and Germany to hold a summit over the escalating violence in northwestern Syria.

A Russian delegation will visit Turkey on Wednesday to discuss the latest situation in Idlib, the Turkish president said.

Erdogan on Saturday had announced he would hold a four-party summit with Putin, France's Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on March 5.

But he told reporters in a televised press conference before travelling to Azerbaijan "there is no full agreement" on holding the meeting.

“We try to determine our [Syria] road map by negotiating with Russia at the highest level,” Erdogan said.

Turkey is working closely with Russia to resolve issues in Idlib and Libya, he added.

The president said he might meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on March 5 to discuss the latest developments in the region. 

Idlib, near Turkey's southern border, falls within a de-escalation zone laid out in a deal between Turkey and Russia in late 2018.

The Syrian regime, backed by Russia, however, has consistently broken the terms of many ceasefires, launching frequent attacks inside the territory where acts of aggression are expressly prohibited.

War over Tripoli

Erdogan said two Turkish people were killed in Libya where they back the internationally-recognised government in the north African state's conflict, adding allied Syrians are honoured to fight there too.

Turkey has been providing military support to the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA), which has been trying to fend off an offensive by Khalifa Haftar's fighters to the east. 

Last year the two sides signed a military cooperation deal and Turkey has since sent military advisors and allied Syrian forces there.

Ankara has so far stressed its forces were not fighting in Libya but rather providing coordination to the GNA. 

Erdogan said on Saturday that Turkey had "several martyrs" in Libya, and on Tuesday he clarified two had died.

"We have two martyrs of ours there (Libya)," Erdogan told a news conference in Ankara