BEIRUT, December 30. /TASS/. The liberation of Aleppo is "a key part of the whole anti-terrorist operation in Syria," Syrian President Bashar Assad said on Friday.
During the week, Assad met with members of Russia's Federation Council and members of the European Parliament (MEPs).
Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Federation Council's International Affairs Committee, told Russian journalists on Friday about the results of the visit to Damascus.
The lawmaker told TASS that the Syrian leadership thinks that the success in Aleppo "has become a turning point which will allow to dramatically change the situation in the country and firmly move toward achieving complete victory over terrorism and launching a political process."
"Our trip to Syria and talks with Bashar Assad coincided with ceasefire declared on the whole territory as a result of an agreement with Turkey and Iran ― two countries that have radically opposite approaches to the developments in Syria," Kosachev said. He added that Assad thinks that the agreement on ceasefire lays a long-term basis for stabilizing the situation in the country.
"From the point of view of the Syrian leader, this powerful construction allows to bring all participants in this process to those positions that are now associated with Russia's approaches, i.e. focus attention on countering terrorism and avoiding interference into domestic affairs of Syria," Kosachev stressed.