{"id":2381864,"date":"2024-12-19T11:07:02","date_gmt":"2024-12-19T16:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/putin-says-he-will-meet-with-assad-soon-and-ask-him-about-austin-tice-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-12-19T11:07:48","modified_gmt":"2024-12-19T16:07:48","slug":"putin-says-he-will-meet-with-assad-soon-and-ask-him-about-austin-tice-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/putin-says-he-will-meet-with-assad-soon-and-ask-him-about-austin-tice-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Putin says he will meet with Assad soon and ask him about Austin Tice &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fputin-says-he-will-meet-with-assad-soon-and-ask-him-about-austin-tice-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2381864&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Russian President Vladimir Putin announced \u200chis intention to meet with former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the near \u2063future. During this meeting, he plans to inquire about the fate of Austin Tice, an American journalist who has been missing as 2012. \u2064This statement was made during Putin&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">lengthy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/china-biden-needs-ukraine-war-to-tank-foreign-economies-and-boost-his-own\/\" title=\"China: Biden Needs Ukraine War to Tank Foreign Economies and Boost His Own\">annual <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gov-whitmer-media-caught-in-another-lie-anarchist-arrested-for-plot-to-kidnap-and-kill-whitmer-hates-president-trump-trump-is-a-tyrant-video\/\" title=\"Gov. Whitmer, Media Caught in Another Lie - Anarchist Arrested For Plot to Kidnap and Kill Whitmer Hates President Trump, &#039;Trump is a Tyrant&#039; (VIDEO)\">press conference<\/a><\/a><\/a>, where he addressed various questions and topics. During his annual press conference, Russian President vladimir Putin\u200c expressed his intention\u2063 to meet with \u200bformer Syrian\u200d president \u2063Bashar al-Assad to discuss several pressing \u200cissues, including\u200d the case of Austin Tice, an American journalist who has been missing\u200d in \u2064Syria as 2012. Putin&#8217;s announcement \u200ccame amid\u2062 a broader discourse on \u200cinternational relations and security in the region. Tice, who was reporting in \u2064Syria when he disappeared, has been the subject of ongoing efforts by U.S.\u200c officials to locate\u2064 him and secure his release.The mention of Tice during Putin&#8217;s press \u2063conference highlights the complexities of the Syrian \u2062conflict and the intertwining of international diplomacy \u2062with the issue of missing persons in war zones.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Putin says he will meet with Assad soon and ask him about Austin Tice<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1885867\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Russian President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/vladimir-putin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Vladimir Putin\">Vladimir Putin<\/a> said he plans to meet with deposed Syrian President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/bashar-assad\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Bashar al-Assad\">Bashar Assad<\/a> soon and will ask him about the whereabouts of missing American journalist Austin Tice.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>In his annual marathon press conference, fielding questions from around <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/russia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Russia\">Russia<\/a>, Putin publicly spoke on the fall of Assad, a key Russian ally, for the first time. He revealed that he hadn&rsquo;t yet met with Assad, who is currently in exile in Moscow, but that he will soon. Responding to a question from NBC News&rsquo;s Keir Simmons, who cited a letter from Tice&rsquo;s mother seeking Putin&rsquo;s assistance, the Russian president said he would broach the matter during his meeting with Assad.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his annual news conference and call-in show at Gostinny Dvor in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024, as men hold a replica of the banner of the 155th Marine Brigade of the Pacific Fleet, participating in a special military operation in Ukraine in the background. (AP Photo\/Alexander Zemlianichenko)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;I will definitely talk to him. I promise that I will definitely ask this question,&rdquo; Putin said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We also can pose the question to people who control the situation on the ground in Syria,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Tice, a former United States Marine, was a freelance reporter operating in rebel-held territory in Syria in the first year of the civil war. He disappeared in August 2012, seen in a video blindfolded being led away by a militia. The U.S. government believed he was in the custody of the Syrian government until its collapse on Dec. 8.<\/p>\n<p>No clear news has emerged as to Tice&rsquo;s whereabouts since his disappearance. An inmate in one of Assad&rsquo;s prisons who said he was in the cell across from Tice said he last saw him alive in July 2022, according to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/world\/austin-tice-syria-journalist-prison-cell-missing-american-journalist-rcna184105\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NBC News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The collapse of the Assad government has fed hopes that Tice may be freed, but so far, he hasn&rsquo;t been found. Speaking after the fall of Assad, President Joe Biden said the government believes he&rsquo;s alive and &ldquo;think[s] we can get him back, but we have no direct evidence of that yet.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Another American, Christian pilgrim Travis&nbsp;Timmerman, was recovered in the days following the fall of Assad. He was arrested earlier in the year.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Elsewhere, during Putin&rsquo;s press conference, he downplayed the loss suffered by Russia in Syria. He decisively intervened in Assad&rsquo;s favor in September 2015, allowing the government to retake most of the country. The sudden rebel offensive last month occurred while Russia was distracted in Ukraine, limiting its response. The Kremlin has reportedly been negotiating the ability to keep some of its bases in western Syria.<\/p>\n<p>Putin said Russia&rsquo;s 2015 goals had been accomplished, destroying &ldquo;terrorist&rdquo; groups. He said the rebels changed and are moderate now. The leading rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al Sham, is an outgrowth of al Qaeda, a rebrand of the Al Nusra Front.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1885867\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1885867\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Putin plans to meet Assad soon to inquire about Austin Tice<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2653,"featured_media":2381865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Putin-Marathon-News-Conference.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[18545,47120,4470,3733,32076],"class_list":["post-2381864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-assad","tag-austin-tice","tag-meeting","tag-putin","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Putin-Marathon-News-Conference.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2381864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2653"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2381864"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2381864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2381868,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2381864\/revisions\/2381868"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2381865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2381864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2381864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2381864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}