DHAKA: Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a surprise visit to a Russian base in Syria and ordered his troops to start withdrawing from the war-torn country, reports Al Jazeera.

Syrian state TV reported that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with Putin at Khmeimim Air Base, southeast of Latakia, on Monday morning (December 11).

Russia's state news agency Novosti cited Putin as saying that "in general, the combat work in this territory is completed by the complete eradication of terrorists".

Putin made the stop in Syria on his way to Egypt, where he met with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi later on Monday.

As the Syrian government's main ally in the war, Russia started its intervention in September 2015, after an official request by the Syrian government for military help against rebel groups.

Since then, Russia mainly conducted air strikes against groups opposed to the government, including the Syrian National Coalition, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), al-Nusra Front, and others.

In addition, Russian military advisors and special operations forces are stationed in Syria. Prior to the intervention, Russian involvement in the war had mainly consisted of supplying the Syrian army.

The announcement on Monday comes a month after various factions, including the Syrian government and opposition groups, met in Astana to discuss the implementation of a lasting ceasefire agreement.

To date, some 465,000 people have died in the conflict, and more than 12 million Syrians have been displaced.

BDST: 1115 HRS, DEC 12, 2017
SI