World Bulletin / News Desk

The Turkey-U.S. working group meeting on Syria's Manbij will be on hold until the new U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo takes office, according to a diplomatic source.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said during his last visit to Turkey on Feb. 19 that Ankara and Washington had reached an understanding on Syria.

The first working group was held on March 8, in which the main principles of potential cooperation of Turkey and the U.S. was termed "constructive", the source, who spoke anonymously due to restrictions on talking to the media, said.

"A constructive exercise has begun between the two countries. We will wait until the new U.S. secretary of state takes his office and the U.S. administration settles down after Tillerson is removed from office," the source said.

The source added the Turkey-U.S. working group may be held in May.

"The working groups on other issues may convene earlier. There is not a fixed date," the source said.

About Turkey's eight observatory points in Syria's Idlib set up as part of Astana peace talks, the source said other guarantor countries -- Russia and Iran -- had set up similar observation points at areas not as critical as Turkey's.

It is Turkey which entered between the armed opposition groups, anti-regime armed groups in Idlib and Bashar al-Assad regime forces, the source said, adding that Russia and Iran only aim to observe the regime forces.