Mar 26, 2018

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the Syria conflict with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Moscow Monday, as Syrian regime forces, backed by Moscow, close in on the last vestiges of rebel resistance around Damascus.

The talks, the first between Putin and the Qatari leader for two years, were focussed on "boosting bilateral cooperation in various fields... and on the situation in Syria," the Kremlin said in a statement.

More than 2,500 Syrian rebels and civilians prepared to leave Eastern Ghouta on Monday after the largest exodus yet from the opposition enclave, as talks stalled over the final pocket of resistance.

Russia has been militarily involved in support of the forces of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's regime since 2015.

Last June Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates broke off diplomatic ties with Qatar which they accuse of supporting radical Islamists.