Putin indicates end to Russian operations in Syria during talks with Assad

Russia is close to ending its military operation in Syria that tipped the scales in the devastating war in favour of government forces, President Vladimir Putin has said.

The Russian leader was speaking at surprise talks with Syrian president Bashar Assad.

Mr Putin hosted Mr Assad in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Monday ahead of a summit between Russia, Turkey and Iran and a new round of Syria peace talks in Geneva.

“I passed to (Putin) and all Russian people our greetings and gratitude for all of the efforts that Russia made to save our country,” Mr Assad said.

Mr Assad has only ventured outside his war-ravaged nation twice since the conflict began – both times to Russia.

This week’s visit to meet Mr Putin is his second since the crisis began in March 2011 leading to a civil war that has killed some 400,000 people and resulted in millions of refugees.

The first was in October 2015, shortly after Russia launched its military campaign in Syria to shore up Mr Assad’s forces..

The meeting in Sochi, which lasted three hours, came ahead of a summit between the presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey. Iran and Russia have been Mr Assad’s main backers while Turkey supports the opposition.

Mr Putin had spoken with the leaders of Iran and Turkey to “assure them that Russia will work with Syrian leadership to prepare the groundwork for possible understandings” that could be reached on Wednesday to “make sure” that agreements will be “viable,” said Dmitry Peskov, Mr Putin’s spokesman.

The Kremlin said Mr Putin would call US president Donald Trump and Saudi King Salman to discuss the situation in Syria on Wednesday.

Asked whether Mr Putin and Mr Assad have talked about the Syrian president’s future in post-war Syria, Mr Peskov said “possible options for political settlement have been discussed.”

Faced with pressure from other nations urging Mr Assad to step down, Moscow has insisted that it is up to the Syrian people to vote Mr Assad in or out.

With the Syrian government controlling most of the country and Islamic State (IS) fighters in disarray, Mr Putin told Mr Assad at the Monday meeting that Moscow is about to curtail its military presence there.

“Regarding our joint operation to fight terrorists in Syria, this military operation is indeed coming to an end,” he told Mr Assad in televised remarks.

“I’m pleased to see your willingness to work with everyone who wants peace and settlement.”