Support for Putin's Bombing Campaign among Syrians in Russia
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – From far away in his adopted homeland of Russia, Syrian Wail Dzhinid has watched approvingly as President Vladimir Putin's bombing campaign in his war-torn native country has unfolded on his television screen.
Dzhinid, who has lived in Moscow for over two decades and has a Russian wife and two sons, says Moscow's airstrikes in Syria are "very good" and help the Syrian people rather than the Kremlin's ally President Bashar al-Assad, AFP reported on Saturday.
While vast numbers of Syrians have embarked on the dangerous voyage to seek safety in the European Union, those in the small community living in Russia mostly have longstanding diplomatic or family ties to the country.
And like the government in their new home, many of them are staunch supporters of Assad and echo the Kremlin's talking points on the conflict.
Since September 30, Russian jets and warships have launched strikes on Assad's request against what Moscow says are ISIL militants and other "terrorist" groups.
Dzhinid, speaking to AFP in his Moscow home, complete with Middle Eastern style furnishings and a photo showing him shaking hands with Assad, insisted: "People (in Syria) are very happy, they are glad that Russians have finally agreed to help."
Sometimes wiping away tears when talking about the war, Dzhinid, who heads the Syrian Association in Russia, and his wife Roxana wholeheartedly embrace Assad's view that no armed opposition to the government is "moderate", as Western authorities claim, and all should be destroyed along with the militants.
"Some people don't understand why Putin spends taxpayers' money (on Syria strikes)," said Roxana. "You think Syria is somewhere far away? No, it's very close. And when these people will be here cutting you up, you will sing a different tune."
- 'Revenge' against Russia? -
Syria's diaspora in Russia is estimated to number around 40,000, small compared to some countries but reflecting ties that go back to close relations between the Soviet authorities and Assad's father Hafez, whom he succeeded as president.
One young Christian Syrian woman who arrived in August said she now feared Moscow's involvement in the war meant the violence could eventually follow her to Russia.
"Russia risks provoking revenge," said 25-year-old Rana, who lives with relatives. "Are there guarantees that the terrorists won't want payback from the Russians and organise attacks here?"
