MOSCOW (AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Syrian leader Bashar Assad at the Kremlin on Wednesday for talks focused on rebuilding Syria after a devastating civil war and efforts to stabilize the region.
Putin welcomed Assad at the start of the meeting, which came on the anniversary of Syria’s 12-year uprising that turned into civil war, and stressed the “vital contribution” made by the Russian military to stabilizing the country.
Russia has been conducting a military campaign in Syria since September 2015, working with Iran to allow Assad’s government to fight armed opposition groups and regain control of most of the country. While Russia is now concentrating most of its military resources in Ukraine, Moscow has maintained its military foothold in Syria, stationing warplanes and troops at its bases there.
Assad thanked Putin for supporting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, noting that Kremlin support had remained strong despite fighting in Ukraine.
“Although Russia is now also conducting the special operation, its position has remained unchanged,” Assad said, using the Kremlin’s term “military special operation” for Russia’s action in Ukraine and expressing his support for Moscow’s efforts.
The two rounds of talks between the leaders, the first with senior officials from both countries and then a face-to-face meeting over lunch, lasted more than three hours. Russian and Syrian defense ministers also met separately to discuss military cooperation.
Assad’s office said on Twitter that the two leaders discussed “joint cooperation in various forms and developments at the regional and international levels.” It noted that Assad “renewed Syria’s position in support of Russia’s right to defend its national security.”
Moscow has actively supported Assad politically at the United Nations and actively mediated to mend his government’s ties with regional powers.
Some Arab countries that had called for Assad’s ouster in the past have sent aid after the disastrous February 6 earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, killing more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.
International sympathy in the wake of the quake appeared to have accelerated regional rapprochement, with some calling for dialogue with Syria and the country’s return to the 22-member Arab League more than a decade after its membership was suspended over the early months of the crackdown was of rebellion that became war.
As part of the ongoing rapprochement, the foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan recently visited Damascus for the first time since the conflict erupted in March 2011 and met with Assad.
On Wednesday, Assad also thanked Putin for dispatching rescue teams and involving his Syrian-based military to conduct rescue efforts and help deal with the aftermath of the quake.
Before the earthquake, Russia mediated talks between Turkey and Syria.
Turkey has backed armed opposition groups in Syria that have tried to overthrow Assad’s government during the civil war that has killed nearly 500,000 people and displaced half of the country’s pre-war population. Syria has demanded Turkey’s withdrawal from an enclave it controls in northwestern Syria so Damascus can normalize its relations with Ankara.
Surprisingly, talks between the Syrian and Turkish defense ministers took place in Moscow in December. Arab media reported that one of the main issues Assad will discuss with Putin at their meeting on Wednesday is reconciliation between Syria and Turkey.
Asked ahead of Putin’s talks with Assad whether they could play a role in restoring Syria’s ties with Turkey, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied that “the issue of Syrian-Turkish relations will undoubtedly be part of the talks’ agenda.”
Although Turkey has backed Syrian opposition fighters in the north, Ankara and Damascus share their dismay at the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in northeastern Syria. Turkey-backed opposition fighters have clashed with the SDF in the past, accusing it of being an arm of Turkey’s banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The PKK has been waging an uprising against the government in Turkey for decades.
Assad’s government has portrayed the SDF as a secessionist force that has stolen the country’s wealth while controlling Syria’s main oil fields.
Assad’s office said in a statement after the talks that Putin and Assad had discussed “Moscow-backed regional initiatives.” Assad stressed that Syria supports the dialogue “if it leads to realizing the interests of the Syrian people and the unity and integrity of the Syrian territory and leads to clear results, the first of which is the continuation of the fight against terrorism and the Brexit.” illegal foreign forces present on its territory.” The statement was not elaborated on.
The deputy foreign ministers of Syria, Turkey and Russia, as well as a senior Iranian envoy, were scheduled to hold talks in Moscow on Wednesday and Thursday to discuss Syria’s “counter-terrorism efforts,” though pro-government media quoted Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Ayman Sousan as saying the words the meeting “is still being discussed”.
___
Bassem Mroue reported from Beirut.