Speaking at a talk show that was aired by the German public-service television broadcaster Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, Dietmar Bartsch of the German left-wing party Die Winke touted the significance of Russia's role in resolving the ongoing Syrian gridlock.
"The fact is that without Russia — and I agree with you on this – finding a solution to the Syrian crisis will be an impossible task. And we need to act in this region, but only with Russia," Bartsch said.
Touching upon Russia's current air campaign in Syria, he attributed it to the fact that "someone" once described Russia as "a regional power."
"I think that Russia's actions [in Syria] are linked to the fact that someone has called Russia a regional power, thus trying to show that his country is a world power," Bartsch said.
It was an apparent nod to March 2014, when US President Barack Obama said that "Russia is a regional power that is threatening some of its immediate neighbors, not out of strength but out of weakness."
His remarks came a day after former chairman of the NATO Military Committee Harald Kujat said that by launching an anti-terrorist air campaign in Syria, Moscow had added greatly to the beginning of the peace process in the country. He also said that if it hadn't been for Russia's air campaign, Syria would have collapsed and Daesh terrorists would have seized power in this Arab country.
The Geneva peace talks between the Syrian government and representatives of the Syrian opposition began on January 29. On February 9, UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said that the negotiations had been suspended until February 25.
Syria has been mired in a civil war since 2011, with government forces loyal to President Bashar Assad fighting opposition factions and extremist groups, such as Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front, which are banned in Russia. As for the Russian air campaign, it was launched on September 30, 2015, following a request from Assad.
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