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Syria conflict: Russia 'starts to reduce forces'
Syria conflict: Russia 'starts to reduce forces'
BBC NEWS From the section Middle East Related TopicsSyrian civil war
January 6, 2017
Russia is starting to withdraw forces from Syria and its aircraft carrier group will be the first to leave, the Russian armed forces chief says. The announcement comes days after Russia and Turkey negotiated a ceasefire in Syria, which is largely holding, according to the UN.
Russia has carried out air strikes on anti-government rebels since 2015. Moscow's involvement is credited with turning the war in favor of its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"In accordance with the decision of the supreme commander of the Russian armed forces Vladimir Putin, the Russian defense ministry is beginning the reduction of the armed deployment to Syria," Gen Valery Gerasimov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
The Russian naval flotilla is led by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov.
Russia first launched air strikes in Syria in September 2015, saying they were targeting the fighters of so-called Islamic State. The naval group led by the carrier Admiral Kuznetsov has played a minor role in the fighting
Last March, Russia announced it was withdrawing forces but continued air strikes.
This is not Russia's first "withdrawal" from Syria. In March 2016 President Putin announced the start of a pull-out. Some warplanes were flown out.
But Russia's military role continued and its air power remained decisive. Indeed, the full extent of Russia's involvement has never been made clear - this week a Russian open-source research organization noted the deaths of three paratroopers in combat, the first public indication that Russian airborne forces were operating on the ground.
The initial phase of the Russian "draw-down" involves the carrier Admiral Kuznetsov and its naval group, which has hardly played a major role in the fighting. Russia's stated intention is to build up its bases in Syria for the long-term but Mr Putin may be signaling that in Moscow's view, with the fall of Aleppo and the entrenchment of the Assad regime, one important phase of the fighting is over.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38528654
