Russian bases and return of Assad on agenda as Syria’s Sharaa meets Putin in Moscow

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Wednesday in his first official visit to Russia as he seeks to rebuild ties with Moscow following the ouster of Syria’s former president and longtime Kremlin ally Bashar al-Assad in December.

A source familiar with preparations for the meeting said the talks would focus on “two main topics”: the future of Russian military bases in Syria and the fate of Assad, who was granted asylum in Russia after his 24-year rule was brought to a sudden end by rebel groups led by Sharaa last year.

Syria’s state news agency SANA reported that Sharaa and Putin would discuss “regional and international developments of mutual interest and ways to enhance cooperation in service of both countries’ shared interests”.

The question of Assad’s future has become a sensitive one for the Kremlin amid growing calls for his extradition. In September, a Damascus court issued an arrest warrant for the ousted dictator on charges of murder and torture.

In an interview with CBS News released on Sunday, Sharaa said Syria would use “all legal means possible” to bring Assad to justice, but stressed that “engaging in a conflict with Russia right now would be too costly for Syria”.

On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied rumours that the former president had been poisoned in Moscow and said that Assad and his family had been granted asylum in Russia for “humanitarian reasons” as they faced “physical destruction” in Syria.

Novaya Europe’s source, however, said the problem for the new authorities in Damascus extends beyond Assad himself.

“When everything collapsed in Syria, almost a thousand people fled to Russia”, including former military personnel, high-ranking officials and members of Syria’s security services, some of whom are on international wanted lists, the source said.

Russia’s continued military presence in Syria is another key question, as it operates two military bases in Syria: the Hmeimim airbase, near the port city of Latakia, and a naval base in Tartus, further south. It used both extensively during its intervention in the Syrian civil war on Assad’s side in 2015, but the future of both facilities has been uncertain since the fall of his regime.

Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested Moscow could retain its presence in Syria by repurposing the bases as “humanitarian hubs” to deliver aid from Russia and the Middle East to Africa.

Sharaa’s visit will be the second by a member of Syria’s new administration since Assad’s ouster. During a meeting with Putin in the Kremlin in July, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said Damascus wanted Moscow “by our side” as it rebuilt after the bloody civil war and called on Russia to support “transitional justice” in the country, though did not name Assad directly.