Putin also talked to Barack Obama about Ukraine today, among other things:
Putin, Obama Discuss Syria, Ukraine Conflicts
The Kremlin has said Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Barack Obama have discussed the situation in Syria and agreed to increase coordination between the two countries.
"The leaders discussed in detail the situation in Syria, confirming in particular their intention to facilitate the strengthening of a Russian-U.S. initiated ceasefire in this country as well as access for humanitarian aid," the Kremlin said in a statement on April 18.
"For this purpose, additional measures for the rapid response to violations of the cease-fire will be worked out," the statement added.
During the call on April 18, the Kremlin said Putin emphasized the need to distance the moderate opposition from the Islamic State group and the Al-Nusra Front, and also to stop the flow of fighters and arms into Syria from Turkey.
The statement said both presidents stressed the importance of peace talks in Geneva which aims to find a political solution to the conflict.
The two presidents also exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine, with Putin expressing the hope that, with the new Ukrainian government, Kyiv "will finally start taking concrete steps towards implementing the Minsk agreements", the Kremlin said.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said: "Russia needs to abide by their commitments and, by doing so, they can begin to relieve some of the isolation sustained as a result of interfering with their sovereign neighbors in Ukraine."
Based on reporting by AP and AFP
This just in from RFE/RL's news desk:
Russia Suspends Crimean Tatar Mejlis For 'Extremist Activities'
The Russian Justice Ministry has suspended the Crimean Tatars' highest ruling body due to what it called "extremist activities," a fresh escalation in Moscow's crackdown against a group that has broadly opposed Russia's forcible annexation of Ukraine's Crimea Peninsula.
The ministry said in an April 18 statement that the Mejlis, the self-governing Crimean Tatar body legalized by the Ukrainian government in 1999, has been included in a list of civic and religious organizations suspended due to alleged extremism.
Tatars make up around 12 percent of Crimea's population of 2.5 million. Many fled the Black Sea peninsula after its military seizure by Russia in March 2014. Others who remained have complained of harassment or even disappearances under the Moscow-backed authorities there.
International rights groups and Western governments have issued searing criticism of Russia's treatment of the Turkic-speaking Muslim group since the annexation.
The ministry's action now prohibits the Mejlis from using state-owned media, holding public gatherings, participating in elections, and using bank accounts for anything other than paying off taxes, debts, or other financial penalties.