Russia’s defense ministry says it has signed an agreement with the Turkish army to ensure flight safety over war-torn Syria.

The Russian defense ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the memorandum lays the groundwork for coordination between the two countries’ air forces to “prevent accidents involving planes and drones” in Syrian air space.

The ministry says a Turkish delegation traveled to Moscow to sign the agreement.

Relations between Moscow and Ankara took a hit in 2015 after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet near the Syria-Turkey border. It took Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan months to apologize for the incident.

After he did, Russia brought Turkey onboard as a key partner to broker a peace settlement in Syria.

Source: hosted.ap.org