France and Turkey are discussing a diplomatic roadmap for Syria. Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone about the situation in Syria - including Turkey's military offensive in Afrin. Turkey is targeting Syrian Kurdish militants - and views them as terrorists. As CGTN's Michal Bardavid reports, Turkish soldiers have faced stiff resistance in the past few days.

MICHAL BARDAVID ISTANBUL "On Sunday, there was an attack on a border patrol station in Turkey's Hatay province in Hassa. At least five soldiers were injured by a mortar shelling and were taken to nearby hospitals. It comes one day after Turkey witnessed its deadliest day in Afrin since it launched the Olive Branch operation against the Syrian Kurdish group YPG. Seven Turkish soldiers were killed, five of them in an attack on a Turkish tank. Turkey did not wait long to retaliate and carried out heavy airstrikes in the area following the attack. Also on Sunday, the Turkish army announced they had "neutralized" 932 terrorists since the operation began, referring to those who are killed, injured or captured. Turkey says that once the Afrin operation is completed they will move onto other areas such as Manbij. Manbij is where the operation gets tricky as there are about 2,000 U.S. troops stationed there, supporting the YPG in the fight against ISIL. Turkey has repeatedly stated it does not want to have any confrontation with U.S. soldiers and has warned it would not back down. Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag stated that "If U.S. soldiers wear terrorist uniforms or are among the terrorists in the event of an attack against the army then there is not going to be the chance to make a distinction. If U.S. troops come up against Turks in YPG uniform, they will be perceived as... terrorists." So a very clear message to Washington. Michal Bardavid, CGTN, Istanbul."