Russia to Keep Air, Naval Bases in Syria
Local Editor
Russia will keep a naval and an air base in Syria capable of carrying out strikes against insurgents if required after a partial military pullout announced by President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said Tuesday. Putin Monday ordered "a significant part" of Moscow's military contingent to start pulling out of Syria, declaring their work largely done.
Putin made the announcement during a surprise visit to the Russian Hmeymim air base, where he met Syrian President Bashar Assad and addressed Russian forces.
"Thanks to the fact that the operation to save Syria and the liberation of Syrian land from terrorists have been completed, there is no longer a need for broad scale combat strength," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
But he added that Russia would keep the Hmeymim air base in Syria's Latakia province and its naval facility in the port of Tartous. "The president stressed that the terrorists might try to ‘walk tall' again in Syria. If that happens, crushing blows will be carried out," Peskov said.
The United States meanwhile said it has not observed any meaningful withdrawal of Russian combat forces from Syria, despite Putin's announcement of a significant pullout.
Russia's military operation in Syria, which began in September 2015, turned the tide of the conflict in favor of Moscow's ally, Assad. It also established Russia as a power broker in the Middle East, regaining a role it had relinquished after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Assad's opponents, Western governments and some human rights organizations alleged that Russian airstrikes on Syria had killed large numbers of civilians. Moscow has denied the allegation.
The Kremlin has presented the partial withdrawal of its forces as evidence that its mission in Syria has been largely accomplished. That gives a boost to Putin as he launches his campaign for re-election.
In March last year Russia announced a partial drawdown of its forces in Syria. However, a powerful contingent remained in place and there was little sign of operations being scaled back. Putin did not clarify how many soldiers will be returning home this time.
Back home in Russia, many people consider the Syrian mission a successful operation to restore peace - as well as an opportunity for Moscow to flex its military muscles.
The official death for Russian forces killed in combat is 38, according to a Reuters tally.
Separately, the Syrian opposition said Tuesday the government delegation to the Geneva peace talks is refusing to negotiate with them directly and insists on only discussing terrorism. Opposition spokesman Yahya Aridi said the Damascus delegation told UN envoy Staffan de Mistura it won't negotiate directly with the opposition, making it difficult to move forward in the eighth round of indirect negotiations aimed at ending the nearly 7-year-old civil war.
There was no immediate response from the government team in Switzerland, which met again with de Mistura Tuesday and they did not speak to reporters after the meeting.
Syrian opposition and government delegates are back in Geneva after a short break in the eighth round of talks that de Mistura has hosted since early 2016. The government delegation has protested the opposition's insistence that Assad play no role in any future transition period. The opposition has been calling for the "indirect" peace talks - with de Mistura's team shuttling between the delegations - to become direct.
Another opposition official in Geneva, Ahmad Ramadan, told the Associated Press that the government delegation has also refused to discuss three of the four main topics proposed by de Mistura - a new constitution, governance, elections and combating terrorism. He said the government will only discuss terrorism.
Ramadan also said that the government is demanding that the opposition drop its insistence that Assad will have no role in Syria's transitional period.
"The regime is responsible for bringing negotiations in Geneva to this critical point," Ramadan warned.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
