Syrian Army Gains as Putin Defends Strikes

Putin said Moscow's objective was to stabilize the Syrian government and create conditions for a political compromise.

"When a division of international terrorists stands near the capital, then there is probably little desire for the Syrian government to negotiate, most likely feeling itself under siege in its own capital," he said in an interview with Russian state television broadcast on Sunday, the Associated Press reported.

The fighting Sunday was on multiple fronts in the northern part of the central Hama province and the nearby militant-held Idlib province. A Syrian military official said troops seized the northern Hama village of Tak Sukayk. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

It was the second village in the area captured by the government since it launched a wide-ranging ground offensive made possible by Russian airstrikes that began Sept. 30.

In an audio recording, a Saudi militant cleric based in Syria urged militias to unite, mobilize and attack Syrian forces in different provinces in order to avert "consecutive collapses."

Abdullah al-Muhaysini, who is linked to al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, the Nusra Front, said the Russians aim to distract the militants on different fronts ahead of a surprise attack.

"We have to turn that equation around before the infidels seize the initiative," al-Muhaysini said in the recording, which was first shared by the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The militants seized almost all of Idlib earlier this year and hold territory in northern Hama and rural Latakia, a coastal province that is a major stronghold for President Bashar Assad.

Russia says its strikes are mainly aimed at the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group and other terrorists.

US officials claim Russia has directed parts of its air campaign against US-funded groups and other groups branded by the West as "moderate opposition".

The state-run SANA news agency said government forces destroyed at least 20 vehicles loaded with ammunition, and some with heavy machine guns, east of Tak Sukayk, killing the terrorists on board.

The Local Coordination Committees, another activist-run monitoring group, said government helicopters and suspected Russian jets struck at a third village, Tamanah, north of Atshan and Tak Sukayk. Tamanah lies on the border with Idlib.

Both the Observatory and the LCC reported intense clashes and Russian airstrikes in rural Latakia. The Observatory said there were Russian airstrikes there too.

The Russian military said Sunday its jets had carried out 64 sorties in the past day, targeting 63 sites in the Hama, Idlib, Latakia and Raqqa provinces. It said an artillery system and a training base were destroyed in separate strikes in Idlib, and that attacks in the Latakia province destroyed military vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft weapons and mortars.

Putin met with Abu Dhabi's crown prince and Saudi Arabia's defense minister in Sochi, where they attended a Formula One race. Riyadh is one of the leading backers of the terrorists fighting to overthrow President Assad.

After the meeting, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir, who is also in Sochi, said his country is committed to a political solution that would lead to Assad giving up power. He also reiterated that the 2012 road map should be the guiding principle for any talks.