Russia taking first steps toward Syria withdrawal
Print Edition
RUSSIA announced yesterday that it is withdrawing its aircraft carrier and some other Russian warships from the waters off Syria as the first step in a drawdown of its forces in the war-torn Mideast country.
According to Russian General Staff chief General Valery Gerasimov, the Admiral Kuznetsov carrier and accompanying ships are to be the first to leave.
The declaration comes a week after Russia and Turkey brokered a cease-fire in Syria, following a decisive Moscow-backed victory for the government of President Bashar Assad over rebels in the city of Aleppo.
“In accordance with the decision by the supreme commander-in-chief (President) Vladimir Putin, the Defense Ministry is starting to downsize the grouping of armed forces in Syria,” Gerasimov said.
The latest declaration appeared designed to cast Russia as a peace-maker.
“The successes of the Syrian armed forces in the liberation of Aleppo have created the necessary conditions for the peaceful settlement of the conflict,” said Gerasimov. “I’m confident that it will lay the basis for the political settlement of the conflict.”
Syria’s army Chief of Staff General Ali Ayoub visited the aircraft carrier on Friday, according to Syrian state television. He said Admiral Kuznetsov has become “part and parcel of the history of war on terrorism.”
He added that “signs of victory” loom after all the Syria military sacrifices and “Russia’s honorable position.”
Airstrikes from the Russian aircraft carrier began in mid-November and marked the first time it was used in combat. The ship has so far lost two aircraft. An Su-33 fighter jet that crashed in the Mediterranean Sea in December as it returned to the carrier following a sortie over Syria.
In November, a MiG-29 crashed into the sea while trying to land on the vessel.
Russia and Turkey, a strong supporter of Syria’s moderate opposition, brokered the current cease-fire, which came into effect on December 30.
The truce has mostly held but not altogether halted fighting in the country, and the government and opposition have blamed each other for violations of the truce.
The cease-fire is meant to pave the way for peace negotiations in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital, later this month. The gathering could give new impetus for UN-mediated talks between Syria’s warring sides.
The truce, however, doesn’t include areas controlled by the Islamic State group.
Yesterday Syria’s Kurdish-led forces in the north of the country said they have taken control of a medieval castle perched on a hilltop over a strategic town held by IS militants, less than 32 kilometers from the self-declared capital of the extremist group.
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