Talking of Moscow’s army bases within the nation, Ahmed al-Sharaa has stated Damascus has “strategic pursuits” with one of many world powers
The brand new Syrian authorities led by Islamists Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS) want to stay on good phrases with Russia, the nation’s de facto chief Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa has stated. The commander, additionally identified by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Julani, prompt that his authorities wouldn’t essentially be in search of the withdrawal of Moscow’s army installations from the nation.
After the militant teams in Syria took management of Damascus and compelled former President Bashar Assad to resign, the destiny of Russian troops stationed in Syria at Khmeimim and Tartus bases got here into query. Moscow operates the Khmeimim Air Base and a logistics assist heart in Tartus, each located within the nation’s Mediterranean coast. In 2017, Russia and Syria agreed to station Moscow’s troops there for 49 years.
In an interview with broadcaster Al Arabiya on Sunday, al-Sharaa stated that Syria has “strategic pursuits” in sustaining good relations with the “second strongest nation on the earth.”
“We don’t need Russia to exit Syria in a manner that might not be befitting for its long-standing relations” with the Center Japanese nation, the HTS chief emphasised. In response to al-Sharaa, the brand new authorities in Damascus wish to keep away from conflicts with overseas powers.
Earlier this month, he equally instructed reporters that the “Syrian management was eager to keep away from upsetting Russia,” and was keen to present Moscow the “alternative to re-evaluate the connection with Syria in a manner that serves frequent pursuits”.
Chatting with RIA Novosti on Sunday, Russian Overseas Minister Sergey Lavrov famous that the accords stipulating the presence of Russian army personnel in Syria had been “legitimate” and had been “concluded underneath the norms of worldwide regulation.”
The diplomat clarified that Russia was ready to debate the way forward for its army installations with the brand new authorities in Damascus as soon as the declared transition interval, which runs till March 1, has expired.
Earlier this month, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Moscow is sustaining “contact with the representatives of the forces in control of the state of affairs in [Syria], and all the pieces might be determined by dialogue.”
Across the identical time, TASS reported, citing nameless sources, that Moscow had “secured non permanent safety ensures, so the army bases are working as regular.”
A number of armed opposition teams, spearheaded by HTS, launched a sudden offensive in late November. This operation noticed them swiftly seize huge territories throughout Syria in a matter of days, culminating within the dramatic seizure of the capital, Damascus. The velocity and scale of their advance shocked each regional and worldwide observers, leaving the Syrian authorities in disarray. Assad was pressured to relinquish his place and flee the nation, finally in search of asylum in Russia.
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