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'Slow, Highly Coordinated': Trump Says Had Call With Erdogan on Syria Withdrawal

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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump said that he held a "long and productive" telephone talks with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday, during which they discussed "expanded" bilateral trade and the planned pullout of US troops from Syria.

"I just had a long and productive call with President @RT_Erdogan of Turkey. We discussed ISIS[Daesh], our mutual involvement in Syria, & the slow & highly coordinated pullout of U.S. troops from the area. After many years they are coming home. We also discussed heavily expanded Trade," Trump tweeted.

Members of the Turkish-backed Syrian forces - Sputnik International
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Erdogan Decides to Postpone Military Op in Syria After Talk With Trump
The US announcement about the withdrawal from Syria followed Trump’s another tweet, in which he declared the Daesh defeat and added that this fight was the only reason for US military presence in the Arab republic during his administration. Trump added on Saturday that "local countries," including Turkey, should be able to easily deal with remaining members of the Daesh in Syria after the US pullout.

Erdogan, in turn, said that they had agreed to maintain closer coordination on Syria. "Today, we had a very productive telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump, during which we agreed to expand our coordination in various areas — from bilateral trade to the situation in Syria. I hope that these talks will benefit our country and the entire region," Erdogan tweeted.

READ MORE Daesh Presence in Syria is 'Manna to US' — Veteran War Journalist

Meanwhile, a source in Erdogan’s administration told reporters that during the telephone talks, Erdogan had expressed satisfaction with Washington’s decision on Syria and voiced readiness to offer any support to the United States as it withdrew troops from the Arab republic.

French President Emmanuel Macron (C) has a lunch break with French troops during his visit to France's Barkhane counter-terrorism operation in Africa's Sahel region in Gao, northern Mali, on May 19, 2017. - Sputnik International
Macron Vows to Keep French Forces in Levant Region Amid US Withdrawal
On Wednesday, the White House announced that the United States began withdrawing its forces from Syria, but stressed that it did not mean the end of the US-led international coalition's fight against the Daesh terror group.

Earlier in December, Erdogan announced that the Turkish army was ready to start an offensive on the Euphrates east bank against the Kurdish forces at the earliest opportunity. However, on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that a military advance against Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria would be delayed until the US forces' pullout from the country was over.

READ MORE: Hundreds of Raqqa Residents Demand US Troop Withdrawal — Report

Daesh (ISIL/ISIS/IS/Islamic State) is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia.

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