Assad meets Putin in Syria

DAMASCUS, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Syria on Monday, the presidential media office reported.

In the first time since the beginning of the Syrian conflict over six years ago, Putin visited the Russian-run Hmeimim airbase in Syria's coastal city of Latakia.

Putin met their with Assad and inspected the Russian forces there, according to the report.