Russia nears agreement to keep military bases in Syria
Russia is close to agreeing with Syria’s new leadership to keep two vital military bases in the country, according to Bloomberg on December 12th.
Negotiations for Russian forces to remain at the naval port in Tartus and the air base at Hmeimim are ongoing, according to people with knowledge of the matter in Moscow, Europe and the Middle East, asking not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
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Russia’s defence ministry believes it has an informal understanding with Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), the former al-Qaeda branch in Syria that led the offensive to topple Assad, that it can stay at the Syrian bases, the person in Russia said.
However, they added that this situation could still change amid the instability in Syria.
The information could not be immediately verified with officials in the transitional government in Syria, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov didn’t immediately respond to a request to comment.
The Tartus naval base is Russia’s only hub on the Mediterranean, while the Hmeimim airfield is used to supply Russian operations in Africa, allowing it to project political and economic power and regain some of Moscow’s Cold War-era influence on the continent.
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The Kremlin flew Syria’s ex-ruler and his family into exile in Russia over the weekend after convincing him that he had lost the war against the opposition groups who were bearing down on the capital Damascus.
Bloomberg
