WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an interview he hopes history will judge him as a defender of his country from terrorists.
"I hope that history will see me as the man who protected his country from the terrorism," Assad stated in an interview with NBC News aired on Wednesday.
Assad also said he hopes his government is remembered as one that defended Syria from interventionists and protected the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with numerous opposition factions and Islamic extremist groups, such as the Islamic State and the Nusra Front attempting to topple Assad’s government.
US Secretary John Kerry is headed to Moscow this week to discuss with Russian officials the Syrian ceasefire and the possibility of working more closely against terrorist groups.
The Islamic State, also known as Daesh in Arabic, is a designated terrorist organization outlawed in Russia and numerous other countries.
