Russian weapons performed well in Syria but more improvement needed: Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evaluated the performance of Russian weapons deployed in Syria, saying they performed well but there was room for improvement.

New aircrafts like Su-34 bombers and high-precision cruise missiles were used with "high performance characteristics," Putin said as he is hosting a series of meetings from Tuesday to Friday on Russia's defense industry development.

"Long-range precision weapons, both air- and sea-based, were used in combat for the first time in the fight against terrorists in the Syrian Arab Republic," Putin noted, adding that the experiences should be comprehensively studied, while steps should be taken to further improve the weapons systems and boost combat power.

The Russian military has been engaged in Syria since last September, fighting extremist groups including the Islamic State.

In the first meeting of the series on Tuesday, Putin and his advisers discussed the results of Russia's anti-terrorism operation in Syria, identifying problems revealed during the mission.

A professional investigation and a "most thorough" analysis should be conducted to solve the problems and "adjust the future direction of the military equipment's development and improvement," Putin said. Endi