Syria’s Sharaa tells Putin at Kremlin meeting he will respect all past deals with Moscow
Written by: Vladimir Soldatkin, Andrew Osborn and Suleiman Al-Khalidi
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that he would respect all past agreements reached between his country and Moscow; It was a pledge that suggested Moscow’s two main military bases in Syria were safe.
Sharaa, who once headed al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch and toppled his predecessor Bashar al-Assad, a close ally of Russia, late last year, was speaking at the start of Kremlin talks with Putin, his first visit to Russia since coming to power.
Speaking in Arabic, Sharaa told Putin: “There are bilateral relations and common interests that bind us with Russia, and we respect all agreements made with it. We are working to redefine the nature of relations with Russia.”
On renewing relations, Putin told him that Moscow was ready to do its best to act on what he called “many interesting and useful beginnings” already discussed between the two sides.
The Kremlin chief also congratulated Sharaa on the holding of parliamentary elections in Syria earlier this month.
“I believe that this is a great success for you, because it leads to the consolidation of society and, although Syria is going through a difficult period at the moment, it will still strengthen ties and cooperation between all political forces in Syria,” Putin said.
RUSSIAN MILITARY BASES
The Kremlin said the fate of Russia’s two main bases in Syria – the Hmeimim air base in Syria’s Latakia province and the naval facility in Tartus on the coast – would be discussed before the talks.
Russia, which has economic and energy interests in Syria and also wants to secure them, also has a military presence at Qamishli airport in the northeast, close to the border with Türkiye and Iraq.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday that Moscow believes Damascus wants the military bases to remain and has talked about the idea of using them as logistics hubs to deliver aid to Africa by sea and air.
Before the talks, a Syrian source said Syrian officials were seeking guarantees that Russia would not help rearm the remnants of Assad’s forces. The same source said Sharaa hopes Russia can also help rebuild the Syrian army.
SENSITIVE VISIT
Sharaa’s visit is sensitive. Russia has used its military power to support Assad for years against Syrian rebels who came to power under Sharaa’s leadership in December last year. Moscow later granted asylum to Assad and his family, who fled the country.
According to Russian media, the Assads are now living secretly in Moscow.
Sharaa will use the talks to formally demand that Moscow hand over Assad to stand trial for his alleged crimes against Syrians, two Syrian sources told Reuters.
Russia prides itself on being able to protect its foreign allies and is unlikely to agree to hand Assad over to Damascus. Lavrov said on Monday that Russia gave Assad asylum because his life was under threat.
Hoping to win economic concessions from Russia, including the resumption of wheat supplies on favorable terms and compensation for war damages, Sharaa is also expected to press for Moscow’s support to resist Israeli demands for a larger demilitarized zone in southern Syria.
He may also raise the issue of redeploying Russian military police as guarantors against further Israeli encroachment, one of the two sources said.
The Kremlin said it did not expect Putin and Sharaa to hold a press conference after their meeting.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Andrew Osborn in Moscow; Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Ahmed Elimam and Tala Ramadan; Writing by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
