Ankara – President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday embarked on a two day visit toRussia’s increasingly close partner Turkey to launch the construction ofits first nuclear power plant and coordinate policy on the war in Syria.

Putin was to hold an afternoon of talks with his counterpart Recep TayyipErdogan before the two strongmen leaders are joined on Wednesday by IranianPresident Hassan Rouhani for a summit devoted to Syria.

Their meeting in Ankara opened with Putin and Erdogan, via videoconference, launching construction of Turkey’s first nuclear power stationin the Mediterranean Mersin region, a massive project that will come onlinein half a decade.

In a sign of the importance of the alliance, Putin’s visit to Turkey is hisfirst trip abroad since he won a historic fourth presidential mandate inMarch 18 polls.

Putin and Erdogan — who have both led their post-imperial states out ofeconomic crisis but also into a new era of confrontation with the West –have forged an increasingly close alliance in recent months.

The Russian leader was driven to the vast presidential palace surrounded byan escort of Turkish troops in ceremonial dress on horseback and was warmlygreeted by Erdogan who was waiting in person at the gate.

– ‘Close cooperation’ –

Their meeting comes as ties between Russia and the West are nosediving topost-Cold War lows after the March poisoning of Russian ex-double agentSergei Skripal and his daughter in the UK.

While EU powers have rushed to join Britain in condemning Russia andexpelling diplomats over the attack on Skripal, Turkey has been much morecircumspect.

Erdogan, who in 2017 held eight face-to-face meetings with Putin and hasalready spoken to the Russian leader seven times by phone this year, hassaid that Ankara will not act against Moscow “based on an allegation”.

In a move that has troubled Turkey’s NATO allies, Ankara has agreed to buyS-400 air defence missile systems from Russia.

But Ankara-Moscow relations were also tested by a severe crisis fromNovember 2015 when Turkey shot down a Russian war plane over Syria, aconfrontation both sides are trying to put behind each other.

Despite being on different sides of the Syrian civil war, key regimebackers Russia and Iran have joined with rebel-supporting Turkey to pushforward a peace process but also to ensure influence in Syria once theconflict ends.

“We are also in close cooperation with Russia to end as soon as possiblethe terror threat and clashes in Syria,” said Erdogan.

– ‘New stage for Turkey’ –

The Akkuyu power station — a project costing over $20 billion (16 billioneuros) and heavily disliked by environmentalists — was already launchedonce before in February 2015 but then put on hold due to the row over thedowned Russian plane.

“The scale of this project is difficult to exaggerate,” Putin said at theceremony. “This marks a new stage in the development of Turkey’s economy.”

Erdogan declared: “We are witnessing a historic moment.”

The project was launched with Erdogan declaiming “in the name of God!” andwork immediately began on the site, with the first concrete pouring ascelebratory fireworks were let off.

Once completed the power station will provide 10 percent of the electricityneeds of Turkey, which has few energy resources of its own. The first stageis due to come online in 2023, the 100th anniversary of modern Turkey’sfounding, and be completed entirely in 2026.

Russia and Turkey are also building the TurkStream gas pipeline under theBlack Sea that will allow Moscow to pump gas to Europe avoiding Ukraine andincrease Turkey’s importance as a transit hub.

Half of the offshore section of the pipeline has already been installed.

“We are realising a number of strategic projects with the RussianFederation,” said Erdogan. – APP/AFP