1st LD Writethru: Putin orders "significant" pullback of Russian troops from Syria

MOSCOW, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Making a surprise visit to the Hmeymim military airbase in Syria on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the order for a "significant" pullback of Russian troops from the war-hit country, the Kremlin said in a press release.

"In the past two years, the Russian Armed Forces and the Syrian army defeated the most lethal group of international terrorists. Therefore, I made a decision: a significant part of the Russian military contingent in Syria is returning home to Russia," Putin said at the airfield, where he was met by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Thanking Russian servicemen who took part in the anti-terrorist operations in Syria, where the Russian Air Force task group has been deployed since the end of September 2015, he said, "We will never forget about the sacrifices and losses during the fight against terror, both here in Syria and in Russia."

The Russian troops will return home to relatives, parents, wives, children and friends with a victory, he added.

However, Russia will keep its two military bases in Syria, the Hmeymim airbase and the Tartus naval base.

"If terrorists raise their heads again, we will deal them such blows they have not yet seen," he said.

After the brief halt in Syria, Putin landed in Egypt to discuss with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stability and security in the Middle East and North Africa.

Putin's Syria visit comes a few weeks after Assad's surprise trip to Russia's Black Sea resort Sochi. There Putin told Assad that joint military operations against terrorists in Syria were coming to an end, and the focus would shift to a political process, according to the Kremlin. Enditem