Putin to hold talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Moscow

Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold talks with Syria's leader Bashar al-Assad in Moscow on Wednesday, the Kremlin said."Topical issues of further development of Russian-Syrian cooperation in the political, trade, economic and humanitarian spheres, as well as prospects for a comprehensive settlement of the situation in and around Syria will be discussed," the Kremlin said in a statement on Tuesday.Assad's office said he had arrived in Moscow for an official visit during which he would meet with Putin.In a statement, it said that the Syrian president had been greeted on arrival by Putin's special representative Mikhail Bogdanov and the Russian ambassador to Damascus Alexander Yefimov.Assad was accompanied by a "large ministerial delegation", said the Syrian presidency statement.Damascus is a staunch ally of Moscow which intervened in the Syrian conflict in 2015 by launching air strikes to support the government's struggling forces.The Syrian civil war has killed around half a million people and displaced millions more since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.