MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin on Tuesday forcefully defended Russia’s military assistance to Syria, describing it as aid for a government fighting “terrorist aggression” and saying the migrant crisis in Europe would be far worse without it.
The United States has expressed concern about a recent Russian airlift to Syria that is believed to have included military hardware and soldiers.
“If Russia had not supported Syria, the situation in this country would have been worse than in Libya,” Mr. Putin said, and the flood of refugees would have been even higher.”
Pentagon officials say that Russia has sent some of its most modern battle tanks and other equipment to an airfield near President Bashar al-Assad’s hometown, Latakia, in western Syria, possibly to secure the area as a base for airstrikes in support of the government.
“It’s obvious that without the Syrian authorities and the military playing an active role, without the Syrian Army fighting Islamic State ‘on the ground,’ it’s impossible to drive terrorists from this country and from the region as a whole,” Mr. Putin said.
“We are supporting the government of Syria in the fight against a terrorist aggression, are offering and will continue to offer it necessary military and technical assistance,” he added. . .
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