MOSCOW: Russian President
Vladimir Putin has received the Iranian leader's top adviser hours after conferring with the Israeli prime minister about Iran's presence in Syria.
The Kremlin said Thursday that Putin has met with
Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but wouldn't offer any details of the talks. Velayati's visit came hours after Putin hosted Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Iranian presence in Syria is expected to top the agenda of the upcoming U.S.-Russian summit. Russia, which has teamed up with Iran to shore up Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, has warned it would be unrealistic to expect Iran to fully withdraw from the country.
A possible deal could see Syrian troops replacing Iranian forces in the areas near the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights.
AP photo
