PALMYRA, Syria – A high-level Russian delegation toured the ancient site of Palmyra on Thursday, viewing damage left by the Islamic State but also seeking to send another message about Russia’s deep political and military influence in the war-battered nation.
The Russian visit was part of a Kremlin-backed mission to mark recent military gains by Syrian forces – aided by Russian air power – including the recapture of the 2,000-year-old ruins in Palmyra more than a month ago.
The Russian entourage – which visited a Russian military base on Wednesday – also was another show of support for Syrian President Bashar Assad amid mounting Western pressures to make political concessions to help end the nation’s civil war.
Russia’s Marilinsky Theatre orchestra will stage a musical concert in the amphitheater of Syria’s Palmyra later on Thursday.
“The masters of culture are showing their solidarity by standing by those fighting terrorists,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow ahead of the concert. “This of course deserves the highest appreciation.”
The retaking of Palmyra in late March by Syrian soldiers backed by Russian airstrikes has been hailed by Russia as an important showcase of its military intervention in Syria and Moscow’s leadership in the fight against the Islamic State.
In Palmyra, Russia’s culture minister, Vladimir Medinsky, joined Russia’s representative to UNESCO, Eleonora Mitrofanova, reviewing the damage caused by Islamic State militants across the site, spread over a desert plain about 140 miles northeast of Damascus.
