U.S. military to establish presence at Damascus airbase, sources say

The United States is preparing to establish a military presence at an airbase in Damascus to help enable a security pact that Washington is brokering between Syria and Israel, six sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The U.S. plans for the presence in the Syrian capital, which have not previously been reported, would be a sign of Syria’s strategic realignment with the U.S. following the fall last year of long-time leader Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran.

The base sits at the gateway to parts of southern Syria that are expected to make up a demilitarised zone as part of a non-aggression pact between Israel and Syria. That deal is being mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.

Mr. Trump will meet Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, at the White House on Monday, the first such visit by a Syrian head of state.

Reuters spoke to six sources familiar with preparations at the base, including two Western officials and a Syrian defence official, who confirmed the U.S. was planning to use the base to help monitor a potential Israel-Syria agreement.

A Western military official said the Pentagon had accelerated its plans over the last two months with several reconnaissance missions to the base. Those missions concluded the base’s long runway was ready for immediate use.

Two Syrian military sources said the technical talks have been focused on the use of the base for logistics, surveillance, refuelling and humanitarian operations, while Syria would retain full sovereignty over the facility.