German foreign intelligence agency said that the Syrian Army is capable of conducting successful operations against foreign-backed militants “at will”.

German foreign intelligence agency said that the Syrian Army is capable of conducting successful operations against foreign-backed militants “at will”.

German news website Spiegel Online reported on Wednesday that the head of Germany’s Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), Gerhard Schindler, told security officials that the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is now more stable than it has been in a long time.
Last summer BND predicted that the Syrian government would collapse by early 2013.

Schindler said the Syrian army could regain control of the entire south of the country by the end of 2013 if the conflict continues as it has over the past weeks.

According to the report, the German agency currently believes that the foreign-sponsored militant groups in Syria, which include several al-Qaeda-affiliated groups, are facing extreme difficulties in the battle.

Schindler also told German security officials that different armed groups in Syria were fighting with each other to gain supremacy in certain regions.

There is no functional chain of command between the leaders of the foreign-backed Syrian opposition and its armed elements inside the country, the BND head stated, adding that each new battle weakens the militants further.

According to the BND chief, the Syrian army has managed to cut supply lines for weapons and evacuation routes for wounded militants to neighboring countries.

Meanwhile, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations said that the Syrian government forces may remain in power for years to come.

“The regime is still in place, strong and not going anywhere,” Julien Barnes-Dacey said in an interview, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.