Top U.S. defense officials are launching renewed criticism at Russian President Vladimir Putin, charging that Moscow's military intervention in Syria failed to achieve its stated goals, and that it likely lessened Russia's standing in the region.

    Russia said it was coming into Syria to fight ISIS but that's not what it did, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday, using an acronym for the Islamic State terror group.

    "Their military has only prolonged the civil war, as of now, we haven't seen whether Russia retained the leverage to find a diplomatic way forward." The commander of the Russian air force said Thursday that the withdrawal of most of its troops in Syria would be completed within two or three days. The United States has estimated that Russia had 3,000 to 6,000 troops in Syria, with Russia saying about 1,000 would remain after the drawdown.

Source: QNA