Situation in Syria has improved after Russia had started its air campiagn, president Assad told SANA.

"The situation in Syria has improved since the beginning of the Russian operation against terrorists," Bashar al-Assad said. "And now I can say that the [Syrian] army is making advancement on every front."

In two months the Russian aerospace forces have made more progress in Syria than the US-led coalition in a year, Assad added.

The president has also noted that Damascus is ready for dialogue with opposition at intra-Syrian talks in Moscow.

"During my Moscow visit I've said that we are ready for the 'Moscow-3' talks, because we need dialogue [with opposition]," Assad said.

Syria has been mired in a civil war since 2011. The conflict between government forces and rebels, exacerbated by jihadist groups active in the region, has killed some 230,000 and forced over four million Syrians to flee the country, primarily to neighboring states and Europe.

Russia has been conducting airstrikes against Islamic State radicals in Syria since late September at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Moscow also participates in the international efforts to find a political settlement to the crisis, having hosted two rounds of talks between the Syrian government and taking part in the Vienna talks on the Syrian settlement.

By Sputnik News