Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks on Wednesday, Jan. 28, with Syrian interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, who was on a working visit to Russia. They discussed prospects for bilateral relations as well as the current situation in Southwest Asia. Given the serious instability, to say the least, in Syria and the region, Russia’s intervention can be a stabilizing factor.
Referring to the recent fighting between government forces and the Kurdish militias, which seems to have been preliminary resolved, during their meeting Putin stressed: “We have followed closely your efforts to restore Syria’s territorial integrity. I would like to congratulate you on the growing momentum of this process. Russia has always championed this goal, you know our position well, and we fully support your endeavours in this direction.”
Thanking Russia for its role in stabilizing the region, Sharaa stated: “Russia is playing a historic role in achieving unity and stabilizing the situation not only in Syria, but also in the region [as a whole]. We hope that these efforts will continue until the Middle East region attains a higher development and prosperity,” he said. He added that he was “happy to visit Russia for the second time.”
The two also discussed plans for projects in the spheres of industry, sports, medicine, and construction, [according to Putin](http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/79055: “Our various agencies have been very active since your last visit. A large interdepartmental delegation from the Russian government travelled to Syria and worked intensively with their colleagues. Consequently, we have a number of promising initiatives planned, spanning both industry and humanitarian affairs—including sports, medicine, and construction.”
