The change in Turkey’s position is particularly interesting. On Nov. 13, before departing for Sochi to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the fifth time in 2017, President Tayyip Erdoğan was critical of both Russia and the U.S. due to a joint statement issued by Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump in which they ruled out a “military solution” in Syria and emphasized a “political solution.”

“What are we supposed to do with the almost one million people killed by the regime so far? If [the U.S. and Russia] are in favor of a political solution why don’t they pull their troops out of Syria?” Erdoğan said.

Around six hours later, after speaking to Putin for more than two hours in Sochi, the Turkish president said he saw “some basis for a political solution” in Syria.