Putin yields to Erdogan and puts Syria military advance on hold

Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed a plea from his Turkish counterpart for a cease-fire in northwest Syria.

Now he’s effectively conceded the point -- preventing a major escalation in Syria’s seven-year war, at least for now. Russia called off a campaign against the last major rebel- held area in Syria after Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan reached a deal on Monday.

Syria’s Russian-backed army, which had deployed around Idlib province, won’t pursue the attack. Instead, there’ll be a demilitarized zone separating it from opposition groups dominated by jihadists.

As Syrian forces advanced, US President Donald Trump warned of a “human tragedy’’ and his aides threatened military action. But it was Erdogan’s intervention that appears to have swayed Putin.