Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the U.S.-led coalition's refusal to cooperate with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is to blame for the loss of Palmyra to militants.
The ancient city of Palmyra was held by the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) until the spring of this year when Assad's military, supported by Russian forces, took control of the city. Although hailed as a major success at the time, because of the city's historic status, Russian and Syrian government forces lost control of central Palmyra on Sunday.
ISIS online outlets have circulated a video purporting to be the capture of an abandoned Russian base in Palmyra, though it has not been officially verified.
Speaking to journalists during his visit to Japan, Putin claimed the lack of coordination between the West and the Assad regime was to blame for the loss of Palmyra, according to Russian state news agency Itar-Tass. U.S.-allied leaders have refused to support Russia and Assad's operations in Syria, saying they cannot support Assad's brutal crackdown on rebels and civilians. So far, the Syrian civil war has claimed more than 450,000 lives.
"Everything that is happening in Palmyra is the result of the uncoordinated actions between the so-called international coalition with the Syrian authorities and Russia," he said. "I have said many times that in order for the fight with terrorism to be effective we must unite our efforts."
Putin did not elaborate on his statement but it echoed the claims made on Tuesday by Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. He accused the West of stopping military activity against ISIS near Raqqa, thereby allowing the advance on Palmyra.
Although Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the loss of Palmyra was a "loss for the entire civilized world" earlier this week, Putin said on Friday that control of the city was "purely symbolic."
"When it comes to military and political significance, in this sense Aleppo is a much more important topic," Putin said, referring to the recent triumph for Assad's forces in the city. Putin also said that he had recently spoken to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and invited him to begin peace talks with the Syrian government and opposition in Kazakhstan.
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