Damascus, April 16 (IANS) Turkish and Russian troops conducted their fourth joint patrol in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, Turkish Defence Ministry said in a statement.

"The fourth joint Turkish-Russian land patrol was conducted today by air and ground vehicles on M4 motorway in Syria's Idlib province, as part of the earlier Turkey-Russia agreement," Xinhua news agency quoted the statement as saying on Wednesday.

Turkey and Russia inked a deal on March 5 for a temporary ceasefire aiming to calm down escalated tensions between the Syrian government and Turkish troops there.

Russia and Turkey agreed to create a safety corridor 6 km to the north and the south from the strategic M4 highway, which connects Aleppo in northern Syria with Latakia in the northwest.

Moscow and Ankara also agreed on joint patrolling on the highway as part of the efforts to reduce tensions in Idlib.

The agreement came after direct confrontation between Turkey and Syrian forces took place several times in Idlib in early 2020.

--IANS ksk/