On February 6, Russian-led Syrian government forces entered Saraqeb town in northwestern Idlib province in the latest push to capture the last rebel stronghold, Syria's state media said.

President Bashar al-Assad's swift military advance through Idlib province has caused an exodus of civilians towards Turkey's border in the past two weeks, risking a military confrontation with Turkey, whose leader has threatened to drive back the Syrian forces.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that Ankara expected Russia to immediately stop the government attacks, which killed eight Turkish military personnel on Monday and prompted Turkish forces to strike back.

"We conveyed our determination to our Russian counterparts," he said, adding that Ankara was determined to stem the 'humanitarian drama' in Idlib which Turkey says has displaced nearly 1 million people.

Russia said on the same day that some of its troops had been killed in militant attacks in Syria's Idlib province - its first confirmation of casualties in the current round of fighting.

Attacks on Russian military positions and on Syrian government forces were continuing from a Turkish-controlled zone in the region, the Kremlin said.

"There has recently been a dangerous increase in tension and a surge of violence in Idlib," the Kremlin said. Without giving a number, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russian and Turkish military experts were "tragically killed."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there were no plans currently for President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to meet to reduce tensions in Idlib, but such a meeting could be quickly organized if needed.