Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres in a phone call on Thursday that a new stage has been reached in the Syrian conflict, which is being “managed calmly,” his office said.

Erdogan told Guterres that the Syrian government “needs to quickly engage with its people to reach a political solution,” and added that Turkey was “working to de-escalate tensions, protect civilians and pave the way for a political solution.”

The Syrian army said today that pro-Turkish terrorists have captured the city of Hama.

Prior to that, on November 30, the terrorists occupied the city and Aleppo province.