The Turkish authorities have assured that the deployment of their armed forces in the northeast of Syria is a temporary decision. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told this a press conference with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, in Ankara on Saturday, TASS reports.

"The fact that it was agreed in Sochi and presented in writing does not mean a prolonged presence in the northeast of Syria, but that it only refers to the temporary status quo. It is therefore necessary to calculate that Turkey will remain in the Syrian state for a long time," Maas said. "We also talked about it today, and it was confirmed once again," he said. "And that is what I welcome," the German minister added.

"In the context of the agreements reached in Sochi, it is important for us that we first of all state that the ceasefire is maintained and will continue," he said.

Maas also stressed that for Berlin "Turkey has been and remains an important NATO ally."

At the same time, the German Foreign Minister expressed the opinion that after the start of the Turkish operation in the north of Syria and further actions, there shall be a “new reality” in the region.

The minister said that the success achieved in resisting the Islamic State terrorist group cannot be jeopardized. "The fight against IS is not over yet," he said. "We need to look to the future and take concrete steps to stabilize the situation in Syria," Maas concluded.