President Putin paid an unusual visit to Syria yesterday to meet President Assad, who may be an unexpected beneficiary of the killing of the Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. Syrian state media showed the two men together as they toured sites in Old Damascus, including the Greek Orthodox Cathedral and the Great Umayyad Mosque. They also listened to a presentation from Russian military officers stationed in the country. The official report suggested that Mr Putin was there to honour Russian troops — Russian and other Orthodox communities celebrated Christmas this week. It was only the second visit Mr Putin had made to Syria since he launched Russia’s military intervention on the regime’s behalf in September 2015.

Source: The Times January 08, 2020 00:11 UTC