DHAKA: Russian President Vladimir Putin has pledged continued military support for Syria’s Bashar al-Assad despite growing concerns over Moscow’s role in the war.

Putin urged other countries to join Russia in sending ‘military-technical assistance’.

He said the influx refugees to Europe would have been ‘even bigger’ without Russian support for Syria’s government.

The US and its Western allies oppose President Assad, and say that backing him risks prolonging the conflict.

But Moscow has been a key ally of Assad during the bloody civil war, which began in 2011.

It says military equipment is being sent to Syria to help the government combat the so-called Islamic State, reports the BBC.

BDST: 2125 HRS, SEPT 15, 2015
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