MOSCOW (Reuters) - The ruble rose against the dollar on Monday, buoyed by news that Russia would begin withdrawing its forces from Syria, gaining more than 1 percent against the dollar immediately after the announcement.
By 1900 GMT, the ruble was up 0.07 percent at 69.83 against the dollar and 0.6 percent at 77.50 versus the euro.
The Russian currency rose 3 percent against the dollar last week as Brent crude prices added more than 4 percent, lifting investors' risk appetite.
Market attention will soon turn to the Russian central bank's monetary policy meeting on Friday.
While the majority of economists polled by Reuters said early this month they expected the bank to leave rates on hold, slowing inflation and a strengthening rouble mean some think a rate cut could be on the cards.
Russian share indexes were mixed early on Monday, reflecting moves in the rouble.
The dollar-denominated RTS index (IRTS) was down 0.3 percent to 843 points, while the rouble-based MICEX (MCX) was less than 0.1 percent higher at 1,877 points.
For rouble poll data see reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=cpurl://apps.cp./Apps/fx-polls?RIC=RUB=
Russia in graphics: http://link.reuters.com/dun63s