The phrase 'smooth the situation' is correct and can be used in written English.
It is generally used to refer to trying to make a tense or challenging situation better or easier. For example, "The two leaders had to work together to smooth the situation and eventually came to an agreement".
In a college-wide memo that tried to smooth the situation, the chancellor said there would be major changes in English and math remediation course sequences.
I'm sure Capello contacted him and tried to smooth the situation over, but in a World Cup you're spending four weeks together and you have to have team bonding, so he's looking at it and thinking it could affect team spirit or similar.
20 with a charge to smooth the situation in the Middle East.
The wife continues to banter, trying to smooth the situation over and placate the boiling cauldron that is her snooty husband.
Listen with attention and find the humor in this to help you relax and calm or smooth the situation over.
After calling Wallace, he believes that he smooths the situation over.
After Israelis complained on Tuesday, Mr. Obama called Mr. Netanyahu that night to smooth over the situation and they talked for an hour.
He had to make a simple choice between siding with a polite foreigner offering to smooth over the situation with a bit of money, and a couple of poor scoundrels in a type of beat-up bus with a reputation for flouting traffic laws.
She attempts to smooth over the situation at SCDP by suggesting Harry Belafonte sing the jingle.
Blair was able to smooth over the situation and convince Arva that Bobby was old enough to leave home.
The government attempted to smooth over the situation by releasing thousands of political prisoners; a year later, however, there followed a new wave of arrests.
