White House says to review Russia's withdrawal from Syria

The White House said on Monday it will assess Moscow's decision to pull out its air forces from Syria.

"We will have to see exactly what Russia's intentions are," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told a daily press briefing.

Earlier on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the Russian air forces deployed in Syria would start withdrawal from March 15.

Putin said the decision was discussed and coordinated with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during a phone conversation earlier in the day, adding that "the fundamental tasks set for the Russian armed forced in Syria were resolved."

Earnest said, "We have talked about how Russia's continued military intervention to prop up the Assad regime made the efforts to reach a political transition even more difficult."

"It's hard for me to assess what sorts of implications this will have on the talks, what sort of change it will bring about to that dynamic," Earnest said.

The U.S. State Department said on Monday it has not yet assessed reports of the Russian withdrawal.

"I did not see that report before coming out here today. So, I am going to have to reserve comment until we have a chance to take a look at it and make an assessment," State Department spokesman John Kirby said.

Russia began its air campaign in Syria on Sept. 30, 2015. The United States and Russia agreed on a plan for a cease-fire in Syria that began on Feb. 27.

The cessation of hostilities was largely envisaged in Munich on Feb. 12 during a meeting of the International Syrian Support Group, which is co-chaired by the United States and Russia.

The group is composed of the Arab League, the European Union, the United Nations, and 17 countries including China. Enditem