UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS FROM PUTIN, HIS MEETING WITH SYRIA'S BASHAR AL-ASSAD
By Diyar Guldogan
ANKARA (AA) – President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered the start of a withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, according to Russian media.
“I order the minister of defense and the chief of General Staff to begin the withdrawal of the Russian group of forces to the points of their permanent deployment, ” Putin was quoted as saying by Russia's official news agency TASS.
Putin's remarks came during his visit to Russia's Khmeimim Air Base, near Syria's Latakia province, on the Mediterranean coast.
He said Russian armed forces, together with the Syrian army, had defeated international terrorists in the war-torn country.
“In this connection, I made a decision: A significant part of the Russian military contingent, based in the Syrian Arab Republic, returns home, to Russia, ” Putin said, according to TASS.
Putin said Russia's Tartus naval base and Khmeimim Air Base would continue operating. He promised to strike terrorists if they “raise their heads again “.
He congratulated the Russian servicemen for their victory.
Last week Nikolay Patrushev, the head of Russia’s National Security Council, said Moscow is “preparing” to reduce its military presence in Syria.
Russia and Syria signed a deal in August 2015 for the permanent deployment of Russian warplanes and soldiers at the air base.
Putin also met Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad before departing for Egypt, according to the Kremlin statement.
“I hope that together with Iran and Turkey, together with the countries that contribute to the eradication of terrorism, we will be able to effectively establish not just a peaceful life, but a political process to resolve the situation in Syria as a whole, ” Putin said.
After his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi in the capital Cairo, Putin is scheduled to pay a working visit to the Turkish capital Ankara, where he will met his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss bilateral and regional issues.
