NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said yesterday that Russia has kept a “considerable” military presence in Syria to support the regime President Bashar Al-Assad.
“Despite the announced partial withdrawal we see that Russia maintains a considerable military presence in support of the Assad regime in Syria,” he said at a press conference in Turkey, adding that the ceasefire, “despite the difficulties,” remains the “best basis for a peacefully negotiated solution to the conflict in this country.”
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the withdrawal of a majority of Russian troops from Syria ahead of a planned truce between the regime and opposition forces under the auspices of Moscow and Washington.
However, the repeated violations of the ceasefire by the regime forces and the deteriorating humanitarian situation on the ground prompted the Syrian opposition to suspend its participation in indirect negotiations with the regime.