Russia’s President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin.
| Photo Credit: AP

Russia said on Wednesday (January 29, 2025) it had held “frank” discussions with Syria’s new de facto leader as it tries to retain its two military bases in the country, but it declined to comment on what he was demanding in return.

A Syrian source familiar with the discussions said that the new leader, Mohammed al-Jolani (Ahmed al-Sharaa), had requested that Moscow hand over former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Russia when he was toppled by Jolani’s militant group in December.

Syrian news agency Sana said Damascus also wanted Russia, which backed Mr. Assad in the country’s civil war, to rebuild trust through “concrete measures such as compensation, reconstruction and recovery”.

Asked to confirm whether Russia had been asked to return Mr. Assad and pay compensation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment.

Russia, whose troops and air force backed Mr. Assad for years against Syrian rebels, is seeking to retain its naval base in Tartous and Hmeimim air base near the port city of Latakia. Losing them would deal a serious blow to its ability to project power in the region.

The new Syrian administration said after Tuesday’s talks with a Russian delegation headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov that it had “stressed that restoring relations must address past mistakes, respect the will of the Syrian people and serve their interests”.

But the Syrian source told Reuters that the Russians had not been willing to concede such mistakes and the only agreement that was reached was to continue discussions.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said there had been a “frank discussion of the entire range of issues”. It said the two sides would pursue further contacts in order to seek “relevant agreements”, without referring specifically to the two bases.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Russia transported Bashar al-Assad, who was ousted as Syria’s president by a lightning rebel offensive, very securely to Russia, the country’s deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, told NBC News in an interview aired on Tuesday.

Also read: Syria’s Assad and his family are in Moscow after Russia granted them asylum, say Russian news agencies

The Kremlin said on Monday that President Vladimir Putin had made the decision to grant asylum in Russia to Assad. His fall is a big blow to Iran and Russia, which had intervened in Syria’s 13-year civil war to try to shore up his rule despite Western demands that he leave power.

“He is secured, and it shows that Russia acts as required in such an extraordinary situation,” Mr. Ryabkov told NBC, according to a transcript on NBC’s website. He added that he would not elaborate “on what happened and how it was resolved.”

Asked whether Russia would hand over Assad for trial, Mr. Ryabkov said: “Russia is not a party to the convention that established the International Criminal Court.”

Moscow has supported Syria since the early days of the Cold War, recognising its independence in 1944 as Damascus sought to throw off French colonial rule. The West saw Syria as a Soviet satellite.

On Tuesday, Syria’s new interim leader announced that he was taking charge of the country as caretaker prime minister with the backing of the former rebels who toppled Assad.

Also read: Rebels work to form government after Assad ouster; UNSC convenes over Syria situation

Separately, Mr. Ryabkov said that Russia would “definitely be prepared to consider” another prisoner swap, similar to the August exchange that involved Wall Street Journal reporter journalist Evan Gershkovich and ex-U.S. Marine Paul Whelan.

A new deal would be “a healthy step forward, especially at the beginning of the next administration,” Mr. Ryabkov told NBC, adding he would not want to “pre-empt anything.”