Syrian President Bashar al-Assad flew into Moscow on Tuesday for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in what is believed to be his first trip abroad since start of the war in 2011.The leaders discussed their joint military campaign against rebels in Syria, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday, calling the meeting a “working visit”. The Syrian presidency confirmed that Assad and Putin held three meetings in which Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu were present. After the meetings, Putin said he was hopeful that a solution may be reached for the war in Syria, where Russia has been carrying out air strikes since the end of September. By hosting al-Assad, Putin has clearly quashed speculation and rumours that Russia was merely stringing al-Assad along as a bargaining chip in its other ambitions and could dump its support for him during the transition phase of Syria. The meeting shows that al-Assad is in Russia’s eyes the only legitimate ruler for Syria now and in the future and it will stand by its ally for good. Putin also revealed his concern that the 4,000 people from the former Soviet Union republics fighting in Syria for various Islamist groups would bring the ideological and military training back home and wreak havoc. This legitimate concern reveals an additional dimension to the necessity for Russia to unapologetically support al-Assad and make sure no Islamist group emerges victorious. With Russian involvement dramatically turning the tables in Syria against the Islamic State and other insurgents while the year-long US strategy proved ineffectual and counterproductive, the credentials of Russia to dictate the terms of the negotiations for the future of Syria are unquestionable and the western powers have to come to terms with the reality that Russia’s unwavering support will ensure Bashar al-Assad is going to be an equal partner at the negotiating table and will have a role in the country’s future. Protestations that supporting al-Assad will prolong the conflict are fruitless and disingenuous and if the US and its allies make al-Assad’s inevitable involvement in discussions on Syria an issue of contention, it will be they who prolong the conflict unnecessarily.
pk.shafaqna.com
