Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin (L) shake hands after a joint press conference following their meeting in Ankara, on April 3, 2018. (AFP PHOTO)

ANKARA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday discussed developments in Syria and economic cooperation over the phone.

The two leaders highlighted the achievements in the Astana talks for a political solution in Syria, saying the government and the rebels should work out a constructive progress within the UN, state-run Anadolu Agency cited presidential sources as saying.

During the phone conversation, Erdogan and Putin agreed that Syria should not become a conflict zone between Israel and Iran, while the territorial integrity of Syria should be maintained by international parties.

Erdogan also said the political process in Syria should not include groups linked to People's Protection Units or groups under the control of terrorist organizations.

On bilateral ties, both sides expressed satisfaction over the progress of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant and the TurkStream natural gas pipeline projects.

They also stressed the use of local currencies in bilateral trade.

Last month, Erdogan and Putin attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in Turkey's southern province of Mersin, which is built by Russia's state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom and scheduled to come on stream in 2023.

TurkStream is the project for a transit-free export gas pipeline stretching across the Black Sea from Russia to Turkey, and then to Turkey's border with neighboring countries.