Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Sochi Sept. 17 for what was initially seen as a final showdown over Idlib. The situation in the northern Syian province has been in the spotlight of all Middle East watchers for well over a month, with escalations between the two sides threatening a large-scale humanitarian crisis.

Al-Monitor reported on earlier efforts between Russian and Turkish diplomats as well as military and intelligence officials to work out a "peaceful scenario" for Idlib, but it took a meeting between the two presidents to reach the agreement on a buffer zone. In fact, the Sochi meeting was the third personal encounter between the two presidents over the last three weeks.

"There is a lot to discuss and some issues are complicated. I am glad to see you, to be able to exchange opinions on this whole set of issues, and to search for solutions to matters still unresolved," Putin noted in his opening remarks.

Work on a new security system in the Syrian Idlib de-escalation zone began on Tuesday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a ministry board meeting.

"Our Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Mr. Erdogan held talks yesterday as part of efforts to resolve the situation in the Syrian Idlib de-escalation zone. The talks also involved defense ministers, foreign ministers and general staff chiefs," he said. "Following long negotiations, the parties agreed on a decision, which makes it possible for us to say that the construction of a new security system in the Idlib de-escalation zone begins today," Shoigu added.

He pointed out that a memorandum on stabilizing the situation in Idlib, signed by Russia and Turkey,

"implies that by October 10, heavy weapons must be withdrawn from the demilitarized zone, which will be 15 to 20 kilometers wide. In addition, all the radical groups will have to leave the zone by October 15. That includes the ISIL [the former name of the Islamic State terror group - TASS], Jabhat al-Nusra [both outlawed in Russia - TASS] and those on the United Nations' list of terrorist organizations," the Russian defense chief said.

US President Donald Trump has once again criticized Jeff Sessions, telling The Hill in an exclusive interview that he "doesn't have an attorney-general" and that he's "very disappointed" with Sessions.

"I don't have an attorney-general. It's very sad." Trump told Hill. TV in an exclusive interview in the Oval Office on Tuesday. He went on to say that he "didn't see" what was coming when he nominated Sessions for the role.

"I'm so sad over Jeff Sessions because he came to me. He was the first senator that endorsed me. And he wanted to be attorney-general, and I didn't see it," he said.

In true Trump fashion, he then went on to state that Sessions performed "very poorly" in the nominating process.

"...I mean, he was mixed up and confused, and people that worked with him for, you know, a long time in the Senate were not nice to him, but he was giving very confusing answers. Answers that should have been easily answered. And that was a rough time for him."

China has already declared its intent to retaliate against US President Donald Trump's new tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports, a move set to raise prices on consumer goods for both countries.

Several analysts have demonstrated how Trump's tariffs will blowback on the US economy. Moody's Investment Service previously warned that the tariffs would reduce US GDP [growth] by 0.25 percent in 2019, to about 2.3 percent. The American economy could take an even bigger hit if Trump proceeds with tariffs on $200 bn worth of Chinese products, Moody's warned.

But whatever the impact on the American economy, an assessment by the British government's Foreign Office (FCO) confirms that China's stock market has indeed taken a direct hit from Trump's tariffs, that so far is much worse than anything the US has experienced.

US President Donald Trump is eyeing a permanent military presence in Poland, saying the country "likes the idea very much." Warsaw had stated earlier it was ready to pay up to $2 billion to have a US military base on its soil.

"Poland is willing to make a very major contribution to the United States to come in and have a presence in Poland, and certainly it's something we'll discuss," Trump said on Tuesday while speaking at the White House before meeting his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda.

Poland "likes the idea very much," according to Trump, who has been looking at the prospect of putting a permanent military base in Poland "very seriously." Duda's statements at the Tuesday briefing indicate Warsaw is indeed more than eager to have a permanent US base on their soil.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I was smiling when talking to Mr. President. I said that I would very much like for us to set up a permanent American base in Poland, which we would call 'Fort Trump' and I firmly believe that this is possible," Duda said, after expressing hope that Trump "will make a decision to deploy to Poland more US units together with equipment."

President Donald Trump's administration has proposed sharply cutting the number of refugees allowed into the United States next year to 30,000.

The announcement, made on September 17 by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, came despite calls from humanitarian groups that the 2018 cap of 45,000 was already too low.

Trump's administration has consistently voiced opposition to accepting refugees and other immigrants, which has helped drive refugee admissions to their lowest level in a decade. The new figure will go into effect October 1.

"The improved refugee policy of this administration serves the national interest of the United States and expands our ability to help those in need all around the world," Pompeo said in a statement.

By comparison, the administration of Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, allowed in 85,000 refugees in its final year in office.

There is no economic crisis in Turkey, according to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey will extend the use of the domestic currency, the lira, as a substitute for the US dollar, he said.

"Don't believe in this crisis. We don't have such a thing. These are all [part of a] manipulation," Erdogan said Wednesday. "This is Turkey, not the United States," he said. "You rent your store and shop with Turkish liras here. Otherwise you will pray a price."

The lira has lost more than 40 percent of its value since the beginning of the year, which has stirred a number of economic difficulties in the country. Inflation is soaring, goods and services have become more expensive.

The Turkish central bank has raised the interest rate to 24 percent despite sharp criticism of this measure from the president himself. The last time the rate was that high in Turkey was 2004. However, this measure has helped to stabilize the lira exchange rate against the dollar.

President Donald Trump has said that he will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un soon. The announcement comes hours after Trump praised Kim's move to dismantle a nuclear test site and allow inspections.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Trump was asked whether he will be meeting with Kim soon, to which the President replied "we will be."

North Korea said earlier on Wednesday that it would demolish key missile facilities in the presence of international observers. President Trump welcomed the announcement, along with the news that North and South Korea would file a joint bid to host the 2032 Olympic games.

Kim made the announcement while meeting South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Pyongyang. There, both leaders agreed to strengthen relations, and proposed measures like building railway connections between the two countries and starting joint economic projects.

Russia may get a dedicated cellular network servicing only civil servants and law enforcement agencies, Vedomosti reports, quoting a national plan framework for developing the digital economy.

The proposal to create a separate network for state agencies has been included in the passport of the 'Digital Economy' program recently approved by the government, Vedomosti daily reported on Wednesday. According to the report, the deadline for the project is set for 2024.

The newspaper quoted an unnamed source as saying that the new network will likely using the LTE-450 standard that allows both the work of cellular phones in push-to-talk regime and high-quality video streaming.

A woman accusing Democrat Rep. Keith Ellison (Minnesota) of abuse says the party abandoned her - a far cry from top Democrats' public show of support for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's accuser.

Karen Monahan said that she was "smeared, threatened, (and) isolated" by the Democratic party when she came forward with allegations of physical and emotional abuse against Rep. Ellison, the Democratic National Committee deputy chair and Minnesota attorney general candidate.

"I've been smeared, threatened, isolated from my own party," Monahan tweeted Monday. "I provided medical records from 2017, stating on two different Dr. visits, I told them about the abuse and who did it. My therapist released records stating I have been dealing and healing from the abuse."