Moscow says Russian warplanes have started to leave Syria

reporting from MOSCOW —  Russian warplanes and troops stationed at Russia’s air base in Syria started leaving for home Tuesday after a partial pullout order from President Vladimir Putin the previous day, a step that raises hopes for progress at the newly reconvened U.N.-brokered peace talks in Geneva.

The U.N. special envoy for Syria called Putin’s announcement a “significant development.” Staffan de Mistura said in a statement that his team hoped the Russian drawdown would have a “positive impact” on the negotiations aimed at finding a political solution to Syria’s war and “a peaceful political transition in the country.”

Putin announced the withdrawal of most of the Russian forces from Syria on Monday, just hours after De Mistura had reconvened indirect peace talks between representatives of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and those of the so-called moderate opposition. After meeting with a government delegation on Monday, the U.N. envoy was to meet with opposition representatives on Tuesday.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said a group of Su-34 bombers was the first to depart on Tuesday, accompanied by a military transportation aircraft. The planes would be making stops at airfields in Russia for refueling and technical checks since some of them are stationed more than 3,100 miles from the Syria base, the ministry said.

Russian state television showed video of three warplanes taking off and flying in formation behind a larger transport aircraft. A correspondent at the base reported on Rossiya 24 television that a second group also had already set off for home and a third was being prepared for takeoff.

Putin didn’t specify how many aircraft and troops would be withdrawn. Russia has not revealed how many soldiers it has deployed to Syria, where it maintains a naval facility as well as an air base, but U.S. estimates of the number of Russian military personnel vary from 3,000 to 6,000.

Russia has deployed more than 50 jets and helicopters to its Hemeimeem air base, in Syria’s coastal province of Latakia.

Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to comment Tuesday on whether Russian aircraft would completely stop bombing militant positions, but he noted that the number of sorties had already dropped by two-thirds since the cease-fire went into effect Feb. 27.

The head of the defense committee in Russia’s upper house of parliament, Viktor Ozerov, said Tuesday that he estimated about 1,000 Russian military personnel would remain in Syria at the two bases, the Interfax news agency reported.

Ozerov said Russia would need a minimum of two battalions, a total of 800 troops, to protect the two bases. In addition, Russia would continue to conduct air reconnaissance, requiring some of the plane crews to remain, and the military specialists advising the Syrian army also would stay, he said.

He said Russia would keep its long-range S-400 air defense missiles at the base. Russia deployed the powerful system in November after Turkey downed a Russian jet along the Syrian border.

The start of the negotiations in Switzerland on Monday offered Putin an opportune moment to declare an official end to the five-and-a-half-month Russian air campaign, which has allowed Assad’s army to win back some key ground and strengthen his positions ahead of the talks.

Announcing his decision in a televised meeting with Russia’s foreign and defense ministers, Putin said Monday that the Russian air campaign has allowed Assad’s military to “radically” turn the tide of war and helped create conditions for peace talks.

With Russia’s main goals in Syria achieved, the pullback will allow Putin to present himself as a peacemaker and help ease tension with NATO member Turkey and the Gulf monarchies vexed by Moscow’s military action.

At the same time, Putin made it clear that Russia will maintain its air base and a naval facility in Syria and keep some troops there. Syria’s state news agency also quoted Assad as saying that the Russian military will draw down its air force contingent but won’t leave the country altogether.

The Syrian presidency said Assad and Putin spoke on the phone Monday and jointly agreed that Russia would scale back its forces in Syria. It rejected speculation that the decision reflected a rift between the allies and said the decision reflected the “successes” the two armies have achieved in fighting terrorism in Syria and restoring peace to key areas of the country.

The Syrian army said it would continue its operations against Islamic State, Al Qaeda’s Syria branch known as the Nusra Front and other militant factions in Syria that have been designated as terrorist groups by the United Nations “with the same tempo.”