Russia Came to Rescue Just as Syria Was 'Close to Falling in the Arms of Daesh'

Syria would have fallen in the arms of Daesh if Russia had not came to the rescue, a Syrian opposition group's leader asserted.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian operation is Syria that has lasted for already a year helped the country survive and keep united, without falling in the arms of terrorists, leader of Moscow-Cairo-Astana opposition platform Qadri Jamil told Sputnik on Tuesday.

"The role of Russia has been decisive. It prevented the country from falling apart. We were close to falling in the arms of Daesh. It was a historic step," Jamil said.

Russia launched airstrikes against terrorist positions in Syria on September 30, 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Since that time and until March 2016, Russian aviation had conducted over 9,000 strikes against the terrorist group outlawed in Russia, helping Damascus launch offensives in key regions of the country.

"There would be no Syrian state [without the Russian involvement]… And Russia itself would have had problems, as Syria could have turned into a foothold for terrorists. This year [of the Russian involvement] has been very positive. We hope this involvement will end up with a full victory over terrorism," Jamil added.

In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a decision to withdraw a major bulk of the Russian forces following successful fulfillment of their tasks in Syria. At the same time, Russia did not abandon its obligations to provide the Syrian government with weapons and military equipment, train military specialists. The Hmeymim air base and a naval facility in the port of Tartus remain operational while Russia's S-400 and Pantsir air defense systems continue to be on duty in Syria to protect Russian servicemen in the war-torn country.