Putin orders start of Russian military pullout from Syria

[webfact]

Putin orders start of Russian military pullout from Syria
By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and JAMEY KEATEN

MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian military to withdraw most of its forces from Syria, timing his move to coincide with the launch of Syria peace talks Monday — an end game that allows the Russian leader to cash in on his gains and reduce his risks in the conflict.

The start of the negotiations in Geneva offers Putin an opportune moment to declare an official end to the 5½-month Russian air campaign that has allowed Syrian President Bashar Assad's army to win back some key ground and strengthen his positions ahead of the talks. With Russia's main goals in Syria achieved, the pullback will allow Putin to pose as a peacemaker and help ease tensions with NATO member Turkey and the Gulf monarchies vexed by Moscow's military action.

At the same time, Putin made it clear that Russia will maintain its air base and a naval facility in Syria and keep some troops there. Syria's state news agency also quoted Assad as saying that the Russian military will draw down its air force contingent but won't leave the country altogether.

The Syrian presidency said Assad and Putin spoke on the phone Monday and jointly agreed that Russia would scale back its forces in Syria. It rejected speculation that the decision reflected a rift between the allies and said the decision reflected the "successes" the two armies have achieved in fighting terrorism in Syria and restoring peace to key areas of the country.

The Syrian army said it would continue its operations against the Islamic State group, the Nusra Front and other terrorist organizations "with the same tempo."

Announcing his decision in a televised meeting with Russia's foreign and defense ministries, Putin said the Russian air campaign has allowed Assad's military to "radically" turn the tide of war and helped create conditions for peace talks.

"With the tasks set before the Defense Ministry and the military largely fulfilled, I'm ordering the Defense Minister to start the pullout of the main part of our group of forces from Syria, beginning tomorrow," Putin said.

He also informed President Barack Obama of his move in a phone call, emphasizing the importance of U.S.-Russian coordination "for preserving the cease-fire, ensuring humanitarian aid deliveries to the blockaded settlements and conducting an efficient struggle against terrorist groups," according to the Kremlin, which added that the conversation was "business-like and frank."

Putin didn't specify how many planes and troops would be withdrawn. The number of Russian soldiers in Syria has not been revealed. U.S. estimates of the number of Russian military personnel in Syria vary from 3,000 to 6,000.

Russia has deployed more than 50 jets and helicopters to its Hemeimeem air base, in Syria's coastal province of Latakia, and they have operated at a frenetic pace, each flying several combat sorties on an average day. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to Putin that thanks to the Russian air support the Syrian military has extended its control to 400 towns and villages over an area of 10,000 square kilometers.

State TV quoted Assad as saying that the collaboration between Russian and Syrian forces has secured "victories against terrorism and returned security to the country."

The U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, who restarted peace talks between the Syrian government and the opposition in Geneva on Monday, said he had no comment on Putin's announcement when contacted by The Associated Press.

Earlier in the day, he warned that the only alternative to the negotiations is a return to war, and described political transition in the country as "the mother of all issues."

The Russian- and U.S.-brokered cease-fire that began on Feb. 27 has largely held, but both the Syrian government and its foes have accused one another of violations. The deal with Washington has achieved a key Putin goal: raising Russia's global profile to appear as an equal to the United States in mediating the Syrian conflict that has dominated global attention.

The Islamic State group and al-Qaida's branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, are excluded from the cease-fire and Russia has said it would continue its fight against the groups considered terrorists by the United Nations.

A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, said the Russians in recent days have been pounding IS targets in and around the western approaches to the city of Palmyra, which is firmly in IS control. Davis said this has been a Russian focus since the cessation of hostilities began.

Officials said Monday they saw no immediate sign of any pullout. Although Putin's announcement caught Pentagon officials by surprise, officials have said they had questioned how long the Russian air campaign would last based on the fact that they were not making regular troop rotations.

Speaking at the United Nations, Russia's U.N. ambassador Vitaly Churkin did not respond to questions on whether Russian airstrikes would end.

Syrian opposition spokesman Salem Al Mislet, in Geneva, cautiously welcomed Putin's move, but urged the Russian leader to withdraw his support for Assad.

"If this step, this action will remove all Russian troops from Syria then it will be a positive step, I believe," he said, adding that Putin should follow up on that "by saying he is standing beside the Syrian people, not beside the Syrian dictatorship."

Moments before meeting with a Syrian government envoy in Geneva, de Mistura laid out both high stakes and low expectations for what is shaping up as the most promising initiative in years to end the conflict that moves into its sixth year on Tuesday. At least a quarter of a million people have been killed and half of Syria's population has been displaced, flooding Europe with refugees.

The truce, however, has helped vastly reduce the bloodshed and allowed the recent resumption of humanitarian aid deliveries to thousands of Syrians in "besieged areas" — zones surrounded by fighters and generally cut off from the outside world.

De Mistura laid out a stark choice for Syrian parties in the talks, saying: "As far as I know, the only plan B available is return to war — and to even worse war than we had so far."

The two sides are deeply split on Assad's future. His foreign minister, Walid al-Moallem, said Saturday that any talk of removing Assad during a transitional period sought by the U.N. is "a red line," and rejected the international call for a presidential election to be held within 18 months — a key demand of the opposition.

But de Mistura, keeping to language laid out in the U.N. Security Council resolution in December that paved the way for the talks, insisted that political change, including a timetable for new elections within 18 months, is the ultimate goal.

"What is the real issue — the mother of all issues? Political transition," he said.

Asked if Putin discussed Assad's political fate in Monday's phone call with the Syrian leader, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it wasn't part of the conversation.

Assad has announced that parliamentary elections in Syria will go ahead next month according to schedule. A Syrian official, Hisham al-Shaar, said the elections will be held only in areas under government control and there will be no polling stations in Syrian embassies abroad or in refugee camps.

The talks have shaped up as the best, if distant, chance in years to end a war that has created an opening for radical groups including Islamic State and the al-Qaida-backed Nusra Front to gain large swaths of land, and prompted at least 11 million people to leave their homes — many fleeing abroad to places like Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq, as well as to Europe.
___

Keaten reported from Geneva. Bassem Mroue and Zeina Karam in Beirut, Albert Aji in Damascus, Robert Burns in Washington, D.C., and Edith Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.


-- (c) Associated Press 2016-03-15

[webfact]

Objectives attained: Russia withdraws troops from Syria
By Catherine Hardy | With REUTERS



"The tasks set out by the Defence Ministry have been largely fulfilled"

MOSCOW: -- The Russian President has ordered his military to start withdrawing “the main part” of its forces from Syria.

The announcement has taken the international community by surprise.

Vladimir Putin says the Russian intervention has met its objectives, five months after forces were sent in to support President Bashar al-Assad.

Analysts say Russian support tipped the balance in favour of the Syrian government.

What will happen on the ground?

The announcement only concerns military support on the ground. Naval and air support will be maintained.

The pullout will begin on Tuesday.

A timeline for withdrawal has not been set.

Russia is a key ally of Syrian President Bashar al Assad. Officials say he is aware of the decision.

What is the context?

Moscow’s decision comes as fresh peace talks get underway in Geneva aimed at resolving the Syrian conflict, which began five years ago this week.

Putin has also ordered that Russia intensify its role in the peace process to end the conflict.

What they are saying

“The effective work of our military created the conditions for the start of the peace process,” – Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country’s action paved the way for the Syrian ceasefire.


-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2016-03-15

[craigt3365]

“The effective work of our military created the conditions for the start of the peace process,” – Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country’s action paved the way for the Syrian ceasefire.

Sad when the bombing of innocent civilians is the only way they knew of to achieve a ceasefire. But I guess Russia lives by the Law of the Instrument:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_the_instrument

The first recorded statement of the concept was Abraham Kaplan's, in 1964: "I call it the law of the instrument, and it may be formulated as follows: Give a small boy a hammer, and he will find that everything he encounters needs pounding."

[does]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

[craigt3365]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

[Steely Dan]

So this comes as a 'surprise' to western commentators. Putin can at least leave with the appearance of having succeeded, I suspect this was his last chance to so do. The recent announcement of the Saudi and GCC forces to intervene in Syria would have pitted Russia against a modern Western equipped force, he would have had his arse handed to him. Now Assad has to negotiate his own removal or fight on to the bitter end with Iranian support. I therefore suspect Assad is finished.

http://app.debka.com/p/article/25296/Putin-to-Assad-Tehran-You-want-to-carry-on-fighting-Count-me-out

[craigt3365]

So this comes as a 'surprise' to western commentators. Putin can at least leave with the appearance of having succeeded, I suspect this was his last chance to so do. The recent announcement of the Saudi and GCC forces to intervene in Syria would have pitted Russia against a modern Western equipped force, he would have had his arse handed to him. Now Assad has to negotiate his own removal or fight on to the bitter end with Iranian support. I therefore suspect Assad is finished.

http://app.debka.com/p/article/25296/Putin-to-Assad-Tehran-You-want-to-carry-on-fighting-Count-me-out

There have been many articles on the net stating Putin was unhappy with Assad. It will be interesting to see how this goes! Best of luck to the Syrian people.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/735b4746-c01f-11e5-9fdb-87b8d15baec2.html#axzz42vnYSfF5

Vladimir Putin asked Bashar al-Assad to step down

[wombat]

does that mean the war is over and all the reffo's can go back to there own country and re-build?

[Scott]

No, it simply means that one fighting faction will be fighting less.

[GeorgesAbitbol]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

You really think USA/EU/Turkey... bombings only kill bad guys?

Wake up!

[kiwikeith]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

You probably watch CNN and support the evangilist Cruz.

Civilians get caught in wars, look at London and Dresden.

the Usa has killed many civilians in illegal airstrikes and hit Hospitals in the middle east.

Israel bombed the hell out of civilians and still kills them, Turkey is bombing and killing innocent Kurds.

Russias intervention has been efective in getting some direction towards peace, Americas airstrikes did hardly a thing.

The most important thing is that ISIS who fight with black market money,US weapons and aid from the Saudis and the Turks has been driven back through the Russian intervention.

Now they are the bad guys, what a joke.

[Srikcir]

When the last Russian troop leaves Syria, the Arab League, European nations and the USA should declare a No Fly Zone over all of Syria.

Then guarantee no further pro-Asaad military actions against the Syrian people.

[craigt3365]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

You really think USA/EU/Turkey... bombings only kill bad guys?

Wake up!

Where did I say that? This is about Russia and Syria.

[craigt3365]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

You probably watch CNN and support the evangilist Cruz.

Civilians get caught in wars, look at London and Dresden.

the Usa has killed many civilians in illegal airstrikes and hit Hospitals in the middle east.

Israel bombed the hell out of civilians and still kills them, Turkey is bombing and killing innocent Kurds.

Russias intervention has been efective in getting some direction towards peace, Americas airstrikes did hardly a thing.

The most important thing is that ISIS who fight with black market money,US weapons and aid from the Saudis and the Turks has been driven back through the Russian intervention.

Now they are the bad guys, what a joke.

Nope. Don't watch CNN, and know nothing about Cruz. Again, this is about Russia and Syria. Please stick to the topic.

[donnybay]

Costing to much maybe? Russia's finances are not in good health due to the oil price

[Rancid]

When the last Russian troop leaves Syria, the Arab League, European nations and the USA should declare a No Fly Zone over all of Syria.

Then guarantee no further pro-Asaad military actions against the Syrian people.

Not so sure about that, the strategy didn't work brilliantly in Libya...well except for the terrorists who inherited the collapsed state. Additionally I wonder if the Syrians really prefer life under ISIS, psychotic fundamentalism doesn't seem to improve the quality of life.

All that aside, this is an interesting turn of events, has a deal been done to chop up Syria as so many vested interests seem to want?

[Scott]

An off-topic post has been removed. The topic is about the Russian pullout of Syria. Stick to the topic, please.

[Steely Dan]

The Russians recently lost most of their top brass from their war room at Latakia due to a massive car bomb. Who thinks a bunch of barely trained Rebels got that lucky?

http://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2016/02/26/many-top-russian-generals-reportedly-killed-by-opposition-groups-in-latakia

Edit; here's a few clues why Putin is outgunned in Syria.

http://www.thomaswictor.com/peace-through-superior-firepower/

Edited March 15, 2016 by Steely Dan

[Pakboong]

it could simply be an expensive game of "Whack a Mole" with Russia being the mole. Putin anticipates US movements and is fully aware of the timing and how the US elections are troubling Americans. He can gear up and gear down at about 20-30% our costs. He is no idiot, he knows exactly what he is doing and and he won't be sharing his reasons with the west any time soon. Simply look at how long and at what expense the US took to counter his move into Syria. Not a simple issue, but one to be taken very seriously. We need our guys to anticipate his moves, not react to them.

[simple1]

Why is Putin's order a 'surprise' to the international community? When Putin ordered Russian military intervention in 09/2015 he stated the engagement would cease somewhere between 3 - 6 months depending of achieving the objective of supporting & reinforcing Assad's military to enable them to commence retaking lost territory. From media reports Russia still has military assets within Syria and offshore should further assistance be needed.

Those that claim the US has been ineffective against Daesh would appear not to be cognisant that an estimated 15k - 20k of Daesh forces have been killed by the coalition, approx 40% of Daesh territory recaptured in Iraq and 20% in Syria; all achieved with only a few US casualties.

Edited March 15, 2016 by simple1

[craigt3365]

The Russians recently lost most of their top brass from their war room at Latakia due to a massive car bomb. Who thinks a bunch of barely trained Rebels got that lucky?

http://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2016/02/26/many-top-russian-generals-reportedly-killed-by-opposition-groups-in-latakia

Edit; here's a few clues why Putin is outgunned in Syria.

http://www.thomaswictor.com/peace-through-superior-firepower/

Some real interesting info there, Dan. I'd not heard of these generals being killed. Some news reports are from the beginning of February. Others are saying it just happened. Interesting that one says the intel was provided by Turkey. Could be, and would for sure make sense considering their current relationship.

Also interesting is the threat from the US. I think the coalition is getting tired of this and could be Russia is worried about pushing things too much. The refugee crisis is creating massive problems, which makes Putin happy. Probably more here than meets the eye. As is always the case.

[JHolmesJr]

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

The situation was similar to prescribing chemo-therapy against cancer….lots of healthy cells get killed due to no fault of their own.

Interesting that he has pulled out….someone like the US would not stop until they had toppled the syrian leader, disbanded his army, employed all sorts of shady allies they knew nothing about…and sowed chaos that would last a couple of generations.

[chilli42]

As brutal a solution that Russia brought to the conflict, it was a message that everyone heard loud and clear ... all parties. The Syrian conflict and ISIS is not going to get resolved unless it's by the Syrian Army and they are not going anywhere without Assad. Without Russian intervention nothing would be happening other than ISIS getting stronger. Plus they were not stupid enough to get tangled up in the conflict longer than necessary.

[Galactus]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

yes Putin intervention was wrong as Russia has zero ties in that region so it was wrong for them to be there in the first place.

They were indirectly and directly supporting ISIS as well and bombing only opposition.

and one of the reason whey this bloodshed is lasting this long.

it was Saudi Arabia, Turkey and some other countries who were about to go clean ISIS in Syria by sending some land forces made this peace talks happen.

[Galactus]

this is just a conversion from Russia.

so later on when some other countries send their troops to Syria, they will have a chance to say 'hey, we were very nice and pulled out but forced to be back!'

and they will still keep their planes, rockets etc

Edited March 15, 2016 by Galactus

[craigt3365]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

yes Putin intervention was wrong as Russia has zero ties in that region so it was wrong for them to be there in the first place.

They were indirectly and directly supporting ISIS as well and bombing only opposition.

and one of the reason whey this bloodshed is lasting this long.

it was Saudi Arabia, Turkey and some other countries who were about to go clean ISIS in Syria by sending some land forces made this peace talks happen.

Syria is one of Russia's top weapons customers. Big money. Russia has a military base there they'd like to keep. And also, they don't want the proposed gas pipeline across Syria. It would kill Russia's strangle hold over Europe.

And you are right, they were indirectly supporting ISIS. Your last comment could be spot on!

[dennnis]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

yes Putin intervention was wrong as Russia has zero ties in that region so it was wrong for them to be there in the first place.

They were indirectly and directly supporting ISIS as well and bombing only opposition.

and one of the reason whey this bloodshed is lasting this long.

it was Saudi Arabia, Turkey and some other countries who were about to go clean ISIS in Syria by sending some land forces made this peace talks happen.

Syria is one of Russia's top weapons customers. Big money. Russia has a military base there they'd like to keep. And also, they don't want the proposed gas pipeline across Syria. It would kill Russia's strangle hold over Europe.

And you are right, they were indirectly supporting ISIS. Your last comment could be spot on!

Iran is big Russian ally in the region.

Saudi Arabia and Turkey are supporting ISIS with weapons and money.

[ggt]

Obama complains to his detractors that dealing with Putin and Russia is not a chess game...but it really is...and Putin is thinking several moves ahead...

Edited March 15, 2016 by ggt

[Pakboong]

In 1980, the G7 countries combined for 54% of the world's GDP while the 5 BRICS countries combined for a mere 15%. In 2015 the two groups were tied at around 31% each. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to extrapolate that out as far as you want to go and realize that Putin is playing a stall game. He is not going to get bogged down in a fight until he has both the economic situation and the military situation well in his favor. He will play the hit and run game as long as he needs to.

[Ulic]

If you think Punt's intervention was wrong, perhaps you can share your view on how you would have gotten peace talks to start. You sound merely pseudo-wise.

There are no easy answers. But bombing innocent civilians would not have been one of my plans.

You probably watch CNN and support the evangilist Cruz.

Civilians get caught in wars, look at London and Dresden.

the Usa has killed many civilians in illegal airstrikes and hit Hospitals in the middle east.

Israel bombed the hell out of civilians and still kills them, Turkey is bombing and killing innocent Kurds.

Russias intervention has been efective in getting some direction towards peace, Americas airstrikes did hardly a thing.

The most important thing is that ISIS who fight with black market money,US weapons and aid from the Saudis and the Turks has been driven back through the Russian intervention.

Now they are the bad guys, what a joke.

While I don't disagree I think Putin got guarantees that Russia will get to keep its

Naval base in Tartus if he withdraws now. This brings al Assad to the table who was

sounding a little to demanding after recent gains because of Russian assistance/intervention.

For Russia it is all about retaining the Tartus base. At least that is what I believe.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Ulic