Russia says it is considering "reformatting" military facilities in Syria

Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that cooperation with Syria is developing very actively and that Moscow is discussing with Damascus "possible reform" of its military facilities in Syria, Reuters reports.

The succession of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a close Russian ally, in December 2024 has raised questions about the future of Russia's Hmeimim air base in Latakia and naval base in Tartus. However, Moscow has since built relations with Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former rebel commander who is now the president of Syria.

“Russian-Syrian cooperation is developing very actively,” said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, when asked about alleged plans to establish a logistics center in Tartus to distribute goods imported from Russia throughout Syria.

"Within the framework of contacts with Syrian partners, the issue of the Russian military presence in Syria is also being considered, including in the context of a possible reform of the functionality of Russian military facilities."

Bases in Syria are an integral part of Russia's global military presence: the naval base in Tartus is Russia's only Mediterranean repair and supply center, while Hmeimim is a major hub for military and mercenary activity in Africa.

Russia intervened militarily in Syria in 2015 to support Assad in the civil war. Reuters reported in 2024 that Russia was withdrawing forces from the front in northern Syria and from positions in the mountains controlled by Assad's Alawite community, but was not abandoning its Mediterranean bases at Hmeimim and Tartus.

Moscow has supported Syria since the early years of the Cold War, recognizing its independence in 1944 as Damascus struggled to free itself from French colonial rule. The West has long considered Syria a Soviet satellite.