The Kurdish militia left northern Syria's buffer zone ahead of the deadline in the Russian-Turkish agreement, Erdogan said.

"The Russian side announced that the Kurdish fighters in Syria withdrew completely from the land near the Syrian-Turkish border before the end of the 150-hour period in the agreement between Ankara and Moscow," the President of Turkey said. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday.

President Erdogan said the two sides were discussing a joint patrol plan for the 10-km buffer zone in the next phase of the agreement approved by him and Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 22.

Under this agreement, the Kurdish militia withdrew all forces and weapons from the buffer zone of 440 km, 30 km wide along the Syrian-Turkish border within 150 hours, ceding control of the area to the Russian military police and Syrian border. Russian and Turkish forces will then patrol the 10-km-wide area in the safety buffer zone Ankara wants to establish in northeastern Syria.

Erdogan praised the deal as a "historic victory". President Putin also expressed satisfaction with the decision, which he said was "extremely important to address the escalating tensions on the Syrian-Turkish border".

Forces in northern Syria after the agreement between Russia and Turkey. Graphics: BBC.