Sergey Shoigu announced the complete destruction of IS* in Syria

The head of the department in an interview with Krasnaya Zvezda stressed that not a single terrorist entered Russia from Syria, despite the fact that the goal of IS was to impose its own "order" on all of humanity.

The Russian military operation, Shoigu said, put a barrier to the expansion of terrorist activities. The civil war in Syria was also ended.

- ISIS is finally defeated. We can say with all confidence that significant damage has been inflicted on the entire international terrorist underground, Shoigu pointed out and added that the leaders of 234 armed formations have taken the path of reconciliation.

He also called the operation of the Russian Armed Forces in Syria unique, and the appearance of a powerful formation at such a distance from the Russian Federation "a surprise" for many.

Recall that Russia launched a military campaign in Damascus in 2015 at the request of the Syrian government. In 2017, the active phase of the campaign ended.

At the same time, Washington has repeatedly criticized Moscow for its "harmful influence" on Syria.

“While Russia often publicly declares that it supports a political solution, for example, in Syria and Libya, at the same time it is involved in activities that undermine the political peace process and widen the conflict”, - said Christopher Robinson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.

The Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, has repeatedly rejected Washington's criticism of Syria and Libya. For example, the Foreign Ministry stressed that Russian forces are in Syria at the invitation of the Syrian authorities to fight terrorists, and the presence of the American military on the territory of this country may qualify as an occupation.

(* - IG is a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation)