Damascus 11 Dec (ANA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the partial withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria, during an unannounced visit there on Monday. Mr Putin was met by Syrian President Bashar Assad as he arrived at the Russian Hmeimim air base, Interfax news agency reports. He had already declared in March 2016 that he was planning to pull out the majority of Russian troops. The Russian leader is also due to travel to Egypt and Turkey for talks. "I order the defence minister and the chief of general staff to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops to their permanent bases," Mr Putin said, according to RIA Novosti news agency.

"I have taken a decision: a significant part of the Russian troop contingent located in Syria is returning home to Russia," he added. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on Twitter to get the latest alerts.(ANA)

FA/ANA/11 December 2017-------