Russia has resumed flights to Syria as Moscow seeks to maintain military bases.
Russia has resumed flights to Syria, where its key military bases are located. This is evidenced by Flightradar24 data, which recorded flights of Russian aircraft to Latakia, Bloomberg reported.
On October 26, a Russian Aerospace Forces transport Il-62M flew from Libya to Latakia and then returned to the Moscow region. At the same time, the An-124-100 Ruslan has made three flights to Bassel al-Assad Airport since October 24.
“A source close to the Kremlin confirmed that Moscow is resuming flights and activity at the Khmeimim base,” Agentstvo News noted.
Russia uses the Kmeimim airbase and the port in Tartus as the main strongholds for military operations in the Middle East and Africa.
The collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime almost a year ago has called into question the Kremlin’s ability to maintain influence and cooperation with the new transitional government of Syria led by Ahmed al-Sharaa.
The loss of bases in Syria would be a serious strategic defeat for Moscow, which is in a confrontation with the United States and the EU.
The Kremlin confirmed that during Putin’s meeting with al-Sharaa, they discussed the future of the bases in Khmeimim and Tartus.
Even if Russia manages to stay in Syria, its military presence may be reduced, Bloomberg notes.
A delegation from the Syrian Foreign Ministry is currently in Moscow working to reopen the embassy and provide consular services.
At the Future Investment Initiative summit in Riyadh, al-Sharaa announced plans to attract foreign investors to rebuild Syria after the war.
Earlier it was reported that Russia had not reached an agreement with Syria on the fate of its military bases.
