THE ECONOMIST | Published December 17, 2024
They are negotiating with Russia about its military presence
At the entrance to Khmeimim air base in western Syria, a portrait of Vladimir Putin keeps watch. A Russian soldier offers a salute to a convoy arriving from Homs. In recent days, the Kremlin has withdrawn hundreds of troops and military vehicles from other parts of Syria, in a mad scramble to consolidate forces at Khmeimim.
The runway is the one Bashar al-Assad used to escape to Moscow. Since the collapse of his bloody regime, Russia’s presence in Syria has been plunged into uncertainty. Many assumed that Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the most powerful rebel group among those that overthrew the old regime, would chuck Russian forces out.
Yet according to reporting by The Economist, the two sides have now entered negotiations. An HTS source familiar with the talks says it is being pragmatic about Syria’s future relations with Russia. HTS has conceded that it will probably allow Russia to keep some or all of its bases. And it is likely to respect Russia’s lease at Tartus port, about 80km south of Khmeimim. That would mean Russia has retained access to its only deepwater naval facility on the Mediterranean. HTS also recognises it is unlikely to see Mr Assad extradited (no official request has been made). “There are no red lines: this is based on interests, not ideology,” says the source.
Russia, under Vladimir Putin, intervened in Syria’s civil war in 2015, to prop up Mr Assad at a time when it seemed that his regime might fall. In return, Mr Putin was awarded a number of key military bases. The two most important were the T4 base in the Homs desert and the Khmeimim air base. Even more crucially, in 2017, the Russians signed a 49-year lease for Tartus port, where they have had a long-standing presence, dating back to the 1970s.
Over the past decade Mr Putin’s air force has pulverised rebel-held areas on a daily basis, killing thousands of Syrians and keeping Mr Assad in power. When Mr Assad fled Syria, Moscow was the only place that offered him refuge. In the week since the regime fell, Russian transport aircraft have continued to fly out former regime officials, including former ministers, as well as extended members of the Assad family and the Makhloufs (relatives of the Assads who helped bankroll the former dictator and run the country) for hefty fees.
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SOURCE: www.theeconomist.com
RELATED: Syria’s new rulers step up engagement with the world
Syrians paint a mural of independence-era flag on a wall in the old city of Homs
BANGKOK POST | Published December 17, 2024
DAMASCUS – Syria’s new rulers stepped up engagement on Tuesday with countries that deemed ousted president Bashar al-Assad a pariah, with the French flag raised at the embassy for the first time in over a decade.
Assad fled Syria just over a week ago, as his forces abandoned tanks and other equipment in the face of a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
The collapse of Assad’s rule on December 8 stunned the world and sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond, after his crackdown on democracy protests in 2011 led to one of the deadliest wars of the century.
Rooted in Syria’s branch of Al-Qaeda, HTS is proscribed by several Western governments as a terrorist organisation, though it has sought to moderate its rhetoric and pledged to protect the country’s religious minorities.
Turkey and Qatar, which backed the anti-Assad opposition, have reopened embassies in Damascus, while US and British officials have launched communications with Syria’s new leaders.
Rooted in Syria’s branch of Al-Qaeda, HTS is proscribed by several Western governments as a terrorist organisation, though it has sought to moderate its rhetoric and pledged to protect the country’s religious minorities.
Turkey and Qatar, which backed the anti-Assad opposition, have reopened embassies in Damascus, while US and British officials have launched communications with Syria’s new leaders.
France, a key early backer of the uprising, sent a delegation to Damascus on Tuesday, with special envoy Jean-Francois Guillaume saying his country was preparing to stand with Syrians during the transitional period.
An AFP journalist saw the French flag raised in the embassy’s entrance hall for the first time since the mission was shuttered in 2012.
After meeting Syria’s new leaders, the United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said on Tuesday he was “encouraged”, and that there was a “basis for ambitious scaling-up of vital humanitarian support”.
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SOURCE: www.bangkokpost.com
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