The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, is said to have openly and directly pledged to back his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Assad, in his fight against Islamist groups.

The claim is made by the British Conservative party politician, David Davis, who has recently met Assad while in a fact-finding mission in Syria.

During the meeting, Davis inquired about the reasons behind Russia’s controversial announcement to partially withdraw its military from Syria in mid-March, “Because Russia was being criticized for stalling the peace talks”, he quoted Assad saying.

The conservative MP revealed that Assad has been given a personal assurance by Putin that Russia ‘will not let Assad lose’. This conversation, according to Davis, took place when Assad visited Moscow in October 2015.

Russia began its military campaign against the terrorist organizations of ISIS and al-Qaeda in Syria in September 2015 upon a formal request from Syria’s President to help defeat the terror groups. The military intervention has proved extremely efficient in boosting the Syrian Armed Forced regaining both momentum and ground in the war-torn country.

In March 15, 2016, Putin ordered a partial withdrawal from Syria. However, the Russian airstrikes have been vital in expelling ISIS from two key strongholds in Palmyra and Al-Qaryatayn.