Russian envoy to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, hailed the US decision to withdraw from Syria, stressing the illegal character of their deployment.
"The pullout of foreign forces from Syria, which are stationed there without Damascus' consent is a step in the right direction", the Russian envoy said.
Nebenzya added that the US decision will not only allow for the restoration of the Arab Republic's sovereignty, but will also enable achieving more in other directions, namely in resolving the "stalemate situation around Rukban refugee camp". He added that the restoration of Damascus' control over territories around Al-Tanf will allow the Syrian government to send humanitarian aid to the camp and help its inhabitants to return to their homes, if they are willing to.
The Russian envoy further stated that with the Syrian army regaining control of the Syrian-Iraqi border, the complete eradication of Daesh forces will be imminent due to coordinated actions by the two countries' militaries.
Nebenzya also touched upon several other issues. Namely, he signalled Moscow's interest in the ongoing efforts on the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula and said that Russia is ready to offer its help to the US in that regard. The envoy also spoke about the US sanctions against Iran, warning that Washington could try to push further limitations on Tehran's activities via the UN Security Council resolution.
Washington announced on 19 December the withdrawal of its troops from Syria within 60 to 100 days. US President Donald Trump justified the pull-out by stating that the American troops had achieved their goal of defeating Daesh* in the Arab state.
The decision was not welcomed by some US officials and was followed by two resignations — US Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, who announced that his views were no longer aligned with Trump's, and Brett McGurk, special presidential envoy for the US coalition in Syria.
*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia
