Dmitry Sablin, a deputy in the Russian lower house of parliament, known as the State Duma, told Russia’s Interfax news agency that the lawmakers would meet Assad to discuss latest developments in Syria.
Sablin said: "We plan to meet him to discuss the situation and support the people of Syria in their fight against terrorism." Sablin did not give a specific date for the planned meeting, though.
Sablin, who serves as the coordinator of a Russian parliamentary group for ties with Syria’s parliament, arrived in Damascus on Wednesday at the head of a delegation which seeks talks with the Syrian leadership and businessmen while on a mission to carry out a number of humanitarian efforts.
The announcement for meeting with Assad came hours after some reports suggested that the Syrian president had .left Syria out of fears that the United States might launch a massive military attack on the country
Sablin stressed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is in Damascus, reiterating that Assad has repeatedly resisted calls to leave the country in the past.
The Russian lawmaker added that he "has met with Assad several times, including in 2014, when the situation in Syria was much worse. At that time, Assad said he would never leave Syria and would share his people’s fate.”
