MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Monday ordered the withdrawal of the “main part” of Russian forces in Syria, a surprise move that he said was justified by the “overall completion” of Moscow’s military mission in the war-ravaged country.
Mr. Putin’s order, reported by the state news media, came as the war in Syria was about to enter its sixth year and a United Nations mediator in Geneva was trying to revive peace talks to stop the conflict, which has displaced millions and created a humanitarian catastrophe.
Russia has operated a naval base on the Syrian coast since the Soviet period, but Mr. Putin’s order seemed to relate to warplanes operating from a new air base in Latakia that since September have carried out intensive bombings against rebels fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad of Syria.
Mr. Putin said the withdrawal would not mean the closing of the Latakia base, and he gave no indication when the withdrawal would be concluded.
Since Russian warplanes began their campaign on Sept. 30, Mr. Assad has gained ground against rebel forces and headed off the risk that his regime, Russia’s closest ally in the Middle East, might collapse.
“I believe, that the tasks put before the defense ministry have been completed over all,” Mr. Putin told Defense Minister Sergei K. Shoigu and Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov at a meeting in the Kremlin on Monday evening. “Because of this, I have ordered that from tomorrow the main part of our military groups will begin their withdrawal from the Syrian Arab Republic.”
The Kremlin said Mr. Putin had telephoned the Syrian president to inform him of the Russian withdrawal, but gave no details of Mr. Assad’s reaction to the move, saying only that he had expressed thanks for Russia’s help and had praised the “professionalism and heroism” of Russian servicemen.
“The leaders noted that the actions of the Russian air forces have allowed a significant turn in the fight against terrorists,” a statement on the Kremlin website said.
In tandem with the military withdrawal, Mr. Putin called on Russian diplomats to strengthen their efforts in reaching a negotiated settlement.
“I am asking the Foreign Ministry to intensify the participation of the Russian Federation in the organization of the peace process on the settlement of the Syrian problem,” he said at the meeting.
Although the timing of Mr. Putin’s announcement was a surprise, some analysts had been expecting it, suggesting that Russia had accomplished what it wanted in Syria and that prolonging the deployment might lead to unanticipated problems.
Continue reading the main storyThe partial cease-fire in Syria, which began Feb. 27, has proved more effective and durable than expected, significantly reducing the level of violence.
At the same time, Mr. Assad and his aides have shown increased unwillingness to negotiate a political settlement, which may have irked his Russian allies.
“Over the past few weeks, the Assad regime has made a number of statements indicating their negotiating position with the opposition remains quite rigid,” said Andrew J. Tabler, a scholar of Arab politics at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “Putin’s announcement, coming on the same day U.N. peace talks started in Geneva and in the absence of a decisive victory by Assad’s forces, indicates that Moscow might not be with Assad till the bitter end,” Mr. Tabler said.
Russia’s military intervention in Syria, which involved the deployment of 45 strategic and tactical bombers as well as fighter planes, helicopters and antiaircraft systems, was Moscow’s first such action outside the former Soviet Union since the collapse of communism in 1991.
The state-controlled news media in Russia trumpeted the intervention as a sign that Moscow had regained its role as a global military power. Television news broadcasters, after weeks of hailing the operation daily, seemed stunned Monday evening when news of the withdrawal first broke.
Russian warplanes gave a major boost to Mr. Assad’s fading military fortunes, flying more than 9,000 sorties and helping the Syrian government regain control of 400 settlements, according to Mr. Shoigu, the Russian defense minister.
The decision to withdraw, announced as abruptly as Russia’s initial decision to intervene, could allow Mr. Putin to avoid the risk that what has been a relatively painless and, in both military and public relations terms, highly successful mission for Russia could turn into a quagmire costly in lives, money and political capital for the Kremlin.
Mr. Putin’s announcement appeared to catch the United States and other Western countries by surprise.
Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said he had not seen reports of Russia’s possible withdrawal from Syria, but the Obama administration has frequently expressed frustration with Russia’s continued military support for Mr. Assad, whom the Americans have long insisted should step down.
“Obviously, we have talked about how Russia’s continued military intervention to prop up the Assad regime made the efforts to make a political transition increasingly more difficult,” Mr. Earnest said.
Mr. Putin’s announcement came as the United Nations mediator, Staffan de Mistura, resumed his efforts to broker a peace deal, acknowledging the gulf still dividing the warring parties and putting the onus squarely on Russia, the United States and other powers to apply whatever pressure was needed to bring them together.
Speaking earlier to reporters, Mr. de Mistura remarked that “the real peacemakers here are the peacemaking powers who wanted these talks,” adding, almost as an afterthought, “and hopefully the Syrian sides.”
If he saw no willingness to negotiate, he said, “we will bring the issue back to those who have influence.”
Reporting was contributed by Neil MacFarquhar from Moscow, Nick Cumming-Bruce from Geneva, Gardiner Harris from Washington and Rick Gladstone from New York.
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