Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Russia on Thursday for a one-day trip, the Turkish presidency said on Monday, amid tensions between Ankara and Moscow over escalating clashes with Syrian government forces in Syria's northwestern Idlib region. 

Erdogan had been expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin after 33 Turkish troops were killed in Syrian air strikes in Idlib last week, prompting Turkey to launch a counter offensive against Russia-backed Syrian government forces in the region. 

Erdogan said on Saturday that he had asked Putin for Russia to step aside in Syria and leave Turkey to deal with Syrian government forces alone. 

China has urged the parties concerned to seek a comprehensive and long-term solution to the Idlib problem through dialogue and negotiations. 

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The Turkish president said Monday that he hoped to reach a deal on a ceasefire in Syria when he meets Putin.   

"I will go to Moscow on Thursday to discuss the developments in Syria with Mr. Putin. I hope that he will take the necessary measures there, such as a ceasefire, and that we will find a solution to this affair," Erdogan said in a televised speech to members of his party in Ankara. 

The Kremlin said Monday that cooperation with Turkey is a top priority, confirming a meeting between the Russian and Turkish presidents on Thursday over escalating tensions in Syria.  

Russia attaches "great importance to cooperation with our Turkish partners," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.  

The meeting comes after a sharp ratcheting up of tensions in Idlib where Turkey has announced a full-scale offensive against the Russian-backed Syrian army. 

Peskov told reporters that Moscow and Ankara are keeping lines of communication open and that the focus must now be on dialogue between the Turkish and Russian leaders.  

"Our militaries are in constant contact. The main thing is that we now focus on negotiations between Putin and Erdogan," he said.  

Despite being on opposing sides of the conflict, Turkey and Russia have coordinated closely in the past. They secured a deal in the southern Russian city of Sochi in 2018 that led to Turkey establishing 12 military observation posts in Idlib to prevent a Syrian offensive and a fresh flood of refugees into Turkish territory.  

However, a recent Syrian military campaign backed by Russia to recapture Idlib has sparked concerns over the worst humanitarian crisis since fighting began in 2011. 

At an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting last week, China's permanent representative to the UN Zhang Jun said the Idlib problem is rooted in the control of the region by terrorist forces. 

Noting that the parties concerned should continue to seek a comprehensive and long-term solution to the problem through dialogue and negotiations, he said Syria's sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity must be upheld in the process. 

(With input from agencies)