Syria’s Foreign Ministry announced that an agreement had been reached to reorganize Russia’s military presence along Syria’s coast. The arrangement includes changes to the status and management of the facilities in Hmeymim and Tartus.
Under the plan, the Syrian state will assume management of the civilian facilities. Hmeymim Airport and the fourth commercial berth at Tartus Port are expected to be gradually brought under a civilian management system.
The role of Russian bases will be redefined
A new model is also envisaged for the military bases and facilities. It was agreed that these sites would lose their status as military bases and be converted into joint training and education centers.
The agreement, prepared after intensive talks lasting a year and a half, sets a timetable of no more than three months for the transformation. The new arrangements are expected to take effect after this period has ended.
A new phase in Syria-Russia relations
Syria’s Foreign Ministry described the agreement as the most important step taken since the talks began. The arrangement is expected to open the way for a different period in relations between the two countries.
Russia provided military and political support to the Bashar al-Assad administration during the war against opposition groups from 2011 to 2024. Revolutionary groups in Syria entered the capital, Damascus, on December 8, 2024, and overthrew the Assad administration.