Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad gave an interview to Rossiya Segodnya Agency, during his official visit to the Russian Federation, in which he answered a wide range of questions in the political, economic and military files.
During the interview, President al-Assad affirmed that Syria and Russia will sign an agreement in the field of economic cooperation in the coming weeks, as the two sides are planning 40 investment projects in the fields of energy, industry, transportation, and housing construction.
President al-Assad noted that his visit to Moscow and his talks with President Vladimir Putin will pave the way for a new phase in relations and cooperation between the two countries.
In response to a question about the possibility of increasing Russian military bases in Syria, President al-Assad stated that this may be necessary in the future because the Russian military presence is important in the balance of power in the world.
His Excellency pointed out that Syria trusts the Russian side, which played a mediating role in facilitating contacts with Turkey, adding Moscow is working with Damascus to end the war in Syria and restore sovereignty over all of its territory.
In this context, President al-Assad noted that the meeting with Recep Tayyip Erdogan is related to reaching a stage in which Turkey is clearly ready without any confusion to completely withdraw from Syrian territory، stop ssupporting terror, restore the situation to the pre-war situation in Syria, this is the only case where there can be a meeting between President Assad and Erdogan.
Whether Syria will recognize the new borders of Russia, President al-Assad stressed that Syria recognized these borders before it was annexed to Russia based on the people’s referendum in the Donbass region.
President al-Assad pointed out that those regions are Russian lands, and even if the war did not take place, they are historically Russian territory.
Regarding the issue of the earthquake and its repercussions and Russia’s role in helping the Syrian people, President al-Assad said “I conveyed my thanks to President Putin and the Russian government for their assistance, because the Russian government rushed by its own from the first hours to assist Syria, and the Russian army participated in the rescue operations, and this aid is still continuing.. but there is another aspect to the support related to the earthquake, which is connected to reconstruction and returning the displaced to their houses.. before we ask for help from any party with this vital issue for the next stage, to put in Syria operational vehicles and structures responsible for the reconstruction proces.
Then we can ask countries to contribute with us in the reconstruction process, and return the displaced to their places of origin or other places of residence.
Source: SANA
