Spotlight: Russian airstrikes largely boost Syrian soldiers' morale

Russian air support has largely boosted the "sprits and morale" of Syrian government forces during their recent recapturing of Rabiah, the second most important bastion of the rebels in the northwestern province of Latakia, near the Turkish border, the soldiers hailed.

"We have retaken much of the countryside of Latakia province thanks to the support of the Russian airstrikes ... we know now that our backs are supported with a strong and advanced air cover," a Syrian soldier told Xinhua, as the military forces have achieved breathtaking progress on key ground under the Russian air cover.

Capturing Rabiah last week was the latest blow to the Turkey-backed militant groups in Latakia and other key rebel strongholds in the country's province of Aleppo in the north, and Daraa in the south.

A couple of weeks earlier, the Syrian army with Russian support captured the town of Salama, the main stronghold of the armed militants, including the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, in northern Latakia.

Rabiah enjoys special significance as it contains and is surrounded by many military camps of the armed rebel groups, including the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and the Western-backed Free Syrian Army.

For the rebels, the town was an important logistic base along with Salma in the northern countryside of Latakia.

"He, who can liberate these areas, can liberate any other area," a soldier told Xinhua, speaking of the tough terrain in Latakia, as its countryside is a chain of mountains and woods.

"The Syrian airstrikes were so limited but now the Russian warplanes are intensifying raids on the rebel-held areas, which has positively reflected on our morale," he added, attributing the victory in Latakia to the Russian airstrikes and reconnaissance.

Before Russia's military intervention in Syria, the Syrian army has lost many soldiers, but in the last battle in Rabiah, only two soldiers were killed.

"We thank the Russian Air Force for the great help they provided us in the Latakia battles, as in previous attempts we had faced difficulties due to the mountainous nature of the area, but now we are progressing," he added.

An officer told Xinhua that the Syrian army has captured over 85 percent of the northern countryside of Latakia, including those most important strongholds.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the officer said the rest towns in Latakia are exposed to army fire and will soon be recaptured.

The aim of the battles in Latakia is to start closing the borders with Turkey, from where most of foreign jihadists are infiltrating into Syria.

Recapturing the whole northern countryside of Latakia puts the Syrian army on the borders of the northwestern province of Idlib, where the Nusra Front is in control along with another jihadi group, known as the Jaish al-Fateh, or the Conquer Army.

The battles in Idlib will be a continuation of the closing-borders strategy, the officer said.

As the military campaign continues, "we could hear about new rapid achievements on ground in the very near future, or hours," he added.

After Rabiah, which is only seven km away from the Turkish borders, the military units will continue to advance to capture the town of Kinsabah, and then reach the western countryside of Idlib.

The officer said the Syrian army managed to recapture 120 km of towns and key areas in northern Latakia with the help of the Russian strikes which have been pounding the rebel positions in Syria since September last year.

"The Russian Air Force played an effective and big role in making the achievement on ground, especially in the reconnaissance and tracking and fire cover," the officer said.

The progress in Latakia is a blow to Turkey that has been supporting the Turkmen rebels in the Turkmen Mountain in northern Latakia, another officer said.

He added that once the battles of Latakia end, an offensive in Idlib's Jisr al-Shugour area will start, noting that these battles are relatively new where a bullet has not been fired for three and a half years, since the rebels captured the areas in northern Latakia.

Cleaning the countryside of Latakia marks the first Syrian province to be freed from "terrorism" after the arrival of the Russian forces to Syria, he pointed out.

The operation and other successful offensives in key areas in Aleppo and Daraa will give the Syrian government a stronger position in the currently underway negotiations in Geneva.

"We are not awaiting negotiations, but relying on our progress on the ground," a Syrian soldier told Xinhua. "He, who controls more ground, will be stronger in any negotiations.". Endit