Turkish president congratulates Putin on re-election

MOSCOW – Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan has congratulated Vladimir Putin on his re-election as Russian president, the Kremlin said on Monday.

The two leaders spoke by phone and discussed the war in Syria, where they noted effective cooperation between Moscow and Ankara in efforts to resolve the crisis, the Kremlin said.

Russia backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government while Turkey backs some rebel groups opposed to his rule, but Moscow and Ankara have been cooperating in the search for a diplomatic settlement to end the seven-year conflict.