Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
Damascus, SANA-President Bashar al-Assad met with Russian President, Vladimir Putin, at the Hmeimim-based Military Base on Monday.
Presidents al-Assad and Putin reviewed the military forces at the Hmeimim base and held a bilateral meeting, then the two Presidents chaired an expanded meeting that comprised senior commanders present in the base, in the presence of Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu and Chief of Staff of the Syrian Arab Army Ali Abdullah Ayoub.
President Putin said that he had ordered the Defense Minister and the Chief of General Staff to start the withdrawal of part of the Russian group of soldiers present in Syria, adding that this decision has been taken in light of the decisive victories achieved by the Syrian army and the Russian forces in the war against terrorism, on top, defeating and expelling Daesh (ISIS) terrorist organization from all Syrian territories.
He congratulated President al-Assad and the Syrian people on those victories after years of steadfastness and struggle, affirming that Russia is determined to go ahead in offering each available support to Syria until restoring security and stability to all Syrian areas, adding that if terrorists appeared again in Syria, Russian forces will carry out strikes that “they’ve never seen.”
President Putin also stressed that his country will continue its efforts aiming at supporting the political process through cooperation with the Syrian government and all sides concerned to enable the Syrian people determine their future by their own will.
President al-Assad, for his part, thanked President Putin over Russia’s active participation in fighting terrorism in Syria, stressing that what the Russian military personnel have achieved will not be forgotten by the Syrian people since the blood of their martyrs mixed with the blood of the martyrs of the Syrian Arab army in the face of terrorists, and the memory of the two armies’ martyrs will remain as the light for the coming generations.
President al-Assad said that the future generations that will read about this war will not differentiate between a Syrian or a Russian martyr, noting that “the sacrifices of the heroes from both sides will ever remain the embodiment of the noblest battle in the face of terrorism, in which blood is mixed with blood to purify our land from the mercenaries who wanted to destroy our homeland.”
The President added that President Putin’s visit to Syria is an opportunity of discussion in the second phase of the combat against terrorism, at the same time, discussion of the political process in Syria, considering that the great victories achieved in the war against terrorism will pave the way wide in front of activating the political work and finding a peaceful solution that spares the blood of the Syrians and restores security to the Homeland.”
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