putins victory russias role in recapturing aleppo
Last Updated : GMT 05:17:37
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice
Last Updated : GMT 05:17:37
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice

Putin's victory? Russia's role in recapturing Aleppo

Emiratesvoice, emirates voice

Emiratesvoice, emirates voice Putin's victory? Russia's role in recapturing Aleppo

Syrian pro-government forces patrol the Bab al-Hadid
Moscow - Arab Today

When Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the Kremlin's bombing campaign in Syria last year to back up leader Bashar al-Assad, the regime's forces were being pushed back.

Now Damascus is celebrating its biggest victory in over five years of war after recapturing control of the rebel bastion in the east of the city and dealing a hammer blow to those looking to oust Assad.

Here's how Russia helped break the stalemate:

- Turning the tables -

Russian warplanes played a central role in bludgeoning rebel-held parts of Aleppo towards defeat with a brutal campaign that stirred memories of Putin's destruction of the Chechen capital Grozny in 1999-2000.

Although Assad's opponents finally gave up after Moscow said it halted air strikes on the city in October, Russia's bombers had already pulverised rebel defences for months, allowing the Syrian leader's forces to tighten their siege.

"Without Russia, nothing would have happened with Aleppo," said Alexei Malashenko, an analyst at the Carnegie Center in Moscow. "Everything was focused on Aleppo."

While Moscow insists its troops are not fighting on the frontlines, it admits it has military advisors on the ground supporting Assad's forces.

Malashenko said Russian advisors had played their role in helping the ground operation, noting that the death of a Russian army tank commander in Aleppo suggested Moscow might have drafted in some of its big guns to help out. 

In addition to helping turn the tide militarily, Russia's presence also made sure of one thing: there would be no intervention from the West in Aleppo -- despite an outcry over the bloodshed. 

As the operation intensified, Moscow demonstratively bolstered its hi-tech air defences in the skies over Syria and sent more warships -- including its only aircraft carrier -- to patrol the shores off the war-torn country.    

- A pyrrhic victory? -

For the Kremlin, victory in Aleppo can be seen as a stunning triumph to crown Moscow's first intervention outside the former Soviet region since the disastrous Afghanistan campaign. 

Russia has helped thrust Assad into a position of strength while breaking the back of more moderate rebels groups supported by Washington and its allies.   

Putin now appears the undisputed kingmaker in Syria and a key player across the entire Middle East. And he cut the US and Europe out of the loop on Aleppo by dealing directly with Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

But the ferocious bombardment of Aleppo saw the West levelling accusations of war crimes that clearly stung the Kremlin and further strained its fragile ties with the West.

That was a blow for what many saw as one of the major initial aims of Putin's intervention in Syria: trying to ease his isolation over the Ukraine crisis.

"The main goal of the operation has been to force the West to speak to Putin," independent military expert Alexander Golts said.

"The situation has come full circle: Russia is now isolated because of the victory in Syria."

Blistering international criticism did eventually see Russia claim to halt its Aleppo strikes in October in the move the Kremlin called a "manifestation of goodwill".

But the damage was done and any chance of pushing the US to coordinate forces in Syria evaporated.  

On the military side, the show of strength in Aleppo did not always go smoothly. 

Moscow's ageing Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier suffered two embarrassing mishaps within a month with two jets ending up in the drink. 

- What's next? -

Just as Russia was about to hail the fall of Aleppo, bad news emerged from elsewhere.

As Assad's troops focused Syria's second city, Islamic State group jihadists seized back control of the ancient city of Palmyra eight months after Damascus and Moscow retook it.   

The loss was both a major blow for Putin -- for whom the capture of the World Heritage site had been a major propaganda coup -- and a potentially worrying sign of things to come. 

The shock IS advance highlighted how tough Assad's forces will find it to keep a lid on areas they control -- and showed that Syria's protracted war is still far from over. 

"With Palmyra captured for a second time, it's difficult to imagine that Aleppo will instantly turn into a peaceful city," Malashenko said.  

"This big city will need to be controlled and there will need to be a huge Syrian army contingent with permanent Russian support."

The defeat of the rebels in Aleppo has so far not been accompanied by any progress towards a negotiated end to the conflict.

An emboldened Assad may now prove even more difficult for Moscow to bring to the table, which could hamper any efforts to scale back Russian operations there. 

Key for the Kremlin will be how US President-elect Donald Trump approaches the Syria conflict when he takes power in January. 

With the capture of Aleppo now a fait accompli, Putin and Assad may be hoping Trump stays true to his word and prioritises cooperation against IS over all else.  

Source: AFP

 

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

putins victory russias role in recapturing aleppo putins victory russias role in recapturing aleppo

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

putins victory russias role in recapturing aleppo putins victory russias role in recapturing aleppo

 



GMT 09:54 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

'Friendly and kind' N. Korean skaters

GMT 09:36 2017 Thursday ,07 December

Heidy Karam’s contract to present talk show close

GMT 10:50 2012 Friday ,20 January

Dusty weather expected in UAE on Friday

GMT 09:35 2018 Saturday ,13 January

New Zealand bat first in third ODI against Pakistan

GMT 10:48 2017 Saturday ,23 December

Meryl Streep's brand under threat

GMT 06:53 2017 Thursday ,11 May

17th Doha Forum To Begin Sunday

GMT 10:30 2017 Thursday ,23 November

Reports underline proliferation of weapons in Arab world

GMT 07:46 2017 Monday ,30 October

Catch it early, treat it early and move on

GMT 08:05 2015 Tuesday ,17 February

Conan O'Brien is first late night host to film in Cuba

GMT 16:17 2018 Thursday ,30 August

Five Saudi women pilots granted GACA licences
 
 Emirates Voice Facebook,emirates voice facebook  Emirates Voice Twitter,emirates voice twitter Emirates Voice Rss,emirates voice rss  Emirates Voice Youtube,emirates voice youtube  Emirates Voice Youtube,emirates voice youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

emiratesvoieen emiratesvoiceen emiratesvoiceen emiratesvoiceen
emiratesvoice emiratesvoice emiratesvoice
emiratesvoice
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
emiratesvoice, Emiratesvoice, Emiratesvoice