Putin held talks with Assad in Moscow

Putin and Assad discussed the Russian military operation in Syria.
Photo: Press Service of the President of the Russian Federation

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday held a meeting with his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

The meeting took place in Moscow, where Assad arrived on a working visit. As explained Peskov, the presidents discussed issues relating to the continuation of the Russian military operation in Syria.

“Issues […] of the fight against terrorist and extremist groups, issues related to the continuation of the Russian operation to support the offensive actions of the Syrian armed forces,” said Dmitry Peskov.

Also, as reported in the Kremlin, during the meeting, the Syrian president informed Putin about the situation in Syria and the plans of action of the Syrian military.

According to the Kremlin press service, during a meeting with Putin, Assad thanked the Russian leader for “help in the fight against terrorism.” Putin, in turn, said that Russia is ready to assist Syria in finding a political solution to the crisis in the country.

“Based on the positive dynamics during the fighting, ultimately, a long-term settlement can be achieved through a political process with the participation of all political forces, ethnic and religious groups. And ultimately, the final word, of course, should remain exclusively with the Syrian people,” Putin said.

On the eve of Russia received from the US Department of Defense agreed memorandum On the prevention of air incidents in Syria, said on Tuesday, the official representative of the Russian Defense Ministry Igor Konashenkov.

The memorandum was one of the first steps towards the “deconflicting” of operations in Syria conducted by the Russian Air Force and the Air Force coalition led by the United States. It will help prevent airplanes from colliding in the air and potential conflicts between them. There is no talk about cooperation or coordination of actions.

Russia launched a military operation in Syria on September 30, stating that hits will be made on positions the extremist group "Islamic State" and other jihadist groups, and that Moscow went for it after it turned to Bashar Assad for help.

American officials say they were alerted to impending Russian airstrikes on Syria just an hour before they were to begin. Also, Western countries and Syrian activists claim that Russian planes are striking the Syrian opposition, and not the positions of the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. Moscow denies these accusations.

Exclusive video footage shot Russian war correspondents in Syria, became hits on the Internet forums of nationalists in Russia.

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Journalists VGTRK, Russian state holding, lead from Syria video blogdemonstrating footage of military operations of the Syrian army with the support of Russian aviation, captured there with the help of a drone.