Syrian militants pledge to protect Russian bases – TASS

Damascus fell under the control of armed militants on Sunday

The anti-government militants and jihadists who toppled President Bashar Assad’s government in Syria have guaranteed the security of Russia’s military bases and diplomatic outposts in the country, a Kremlin source has reportedly told TASS news agency.

Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS) jihadists and US-armed Free Syrian Army (FSA) militants stormed Damascus on Saturday, as the Syrian Army stood down and Assad left the country for asylum in Russia. HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, a former Al-Qaeda commander, proclaimed victory in a televised statement on Sunday, declaring that “the future is ours.”

Speaking to TASS later on Sunday, an unnamed Kremlin source said that Russian officials “are in contact with representatives of the armed Syrian opposition.”

These representatives “have guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic institutions on Syrian territory,” the source said, adding that “we hope for the continuation of political dialogue in the name of the interests of the Syrian people and the development of bilateral relations between Russia and Syria.”

Russia intervened in the Syrian Civil War in 2015, helping Assad wrest back control of his country from Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS), and a panoply of foreign-sponsored militias and jihadist groups. This time around, Moscow did not commit forces to hold back the HTS and FSA assault, with the Russian Foreign Ministry stating that Assad had decided to relinquish power peacefully following back-channel talks with several opposition groups. ”Russia did not participate in these negotiations,” the ministry noted.

Russia began construction of the Khmeimim Air Base near Latakia shortly after it came to Assad’s aid in 2015. The facility has since been used by the Russian Air Force to launch attacks on IS and other terrorist groups in Syria, and to transport supplies and weapons into the country.

Khmeimim Air Base is located around 60km from the Russian naval facility at Tartus, which was built by the Soviet Union in 1971. Russia signed a 50-year lease on the facility in 2017, allowing Moscow full sovereignty over the base and giving the Russian Navy permission to station up to 11 vessels there. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that both facilities had been placed on high alert during the insurgents’ advance on Damascus, but “there is currently no serious threat to their security.”