MOSCOW: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday assured Russian President Vladimir Putin that his government would honour all past agreements with Moscow—a commitment that signals that Russia’s two main military bases in the country are safe.
Sharaa, who ousted former president Bashar al-Assad—a long-time Russian ally—last year, made the statement at the outset of his first official visit to Russia since assuming office.
“There are bilateral relations and shared interests that bind us with Russia, and we respect all agreements made with it. We are working on redefining the nature of relations with Russia,” Sharaa, who was speaking in Arabic, told Putin.
President Putin told Sharaa that Moscow was prepared to do everything possible to build on the “many interesting and constructive initiatives” previously discussed by both sides as they work to renew bilateral relations.
The Russian leader also congratulated Sharaa on the recent parliamentary elections held in Syria earlier this month.
“I believe that this is a great success for you, because it leads to the consolidation of society, and despite the fact that Syria is currently going through difficult times, it will nevertheless strengthen ties and cooperation between all political forces in Syria,” said Putin.
The Russian leader hailed “special relations” between the two countries that “have developed between our countries over many decades.”
After the meeting, which according to Russian state media lasted for more than two and a half hours, Moscow said it was ready to continue its role in Syria’s crude oil production.
“Russian companies have been working on Syria’s oilfields for a long time,” vice premier Alexander Novak was quoted as saying by state news agency TASS, adding that there were some new fields where Moscow was “ready to participate.”
Russian bases
Ahead of the talks, the Kremlin confirmed that the future of Russia’s two primary military bases in Syria—the Hmeimim air base in Latakia province and the naval facility at Tartous—would be on the agenda.
In addition to its military presence, Russia maintains economic and energy interests in Syria, including a position at Qamishli airport in the northeast, near the Turkish and Iraqi borders.
On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that Moscow believes Damascus wants Russian forces to remain at these bases. He also floated the idea of using them as logistics hubs for delivering humanitarian aid to Africa by sea and air.
