would get too excited just yet14 Mar 2016 20:30
“Putin is just sending a message herein that he is ‘in control’ in Syria, and he can force Assad to the negotiating table, if or when he so wishes,” Tim Ash, head of emerging-market strategy at Nomura in London, said by e-mail. Putin is also trying “to reinforce on the West that Russia can brings lots of ‘solutions’ in Syria, and all this still seems to be a Russian negotiating ploy with the West.”
White House spokesman Josh Earnest declined to comment on the Russian pullout, saying he hadn’t seen the report. He didn’t rule out a call between Putin and U.S. President Barack Obama.
United Nations-led peace talks resumed Monday in Geneva, with few signs that Assad or the opposition are willing to make the major compromises needed to turn the more than two-week-old cease-fire into lasting peace. Putin instructed Lavrov to boost the nation’s role in the peace process.