Victors over Assad in Moscow: Chief of the General Staff of the New Syrian Government Arrives in Russia

Major General Ali al-Nassan, Syria’s Chief of the General Staff, has arrived in Moscow at the head of the official delegation of the new Syrian government’s Ministry of Defense.

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-bek Yevkurov received the Syrian delegation in the Russian capital, the Russian news outlet TASS reported.

The Russian Defense Ministry stated that the visit aims to develop coordination mechanisms between the military departments of both countries.

This is the first visit of the Syrian delegation of the new government to Moscow since the overthrow of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024.

During the previous talks, the parties agreed on the need to “inventory” existing agreements between the two countries and to search for new formats of Russia’s participation in the restoration of the Syrian economy, which was destroyed by years of war.

Since 2015, Moscow has been actively supporting the Assad regime, including with air strikes, weapons, and military advisors. This support allowed Assad to retain power and change the course of the civil war until 2024.

Russian and government forces fought for years against the rebels, who eventually won. Representatives of the new government have now arrived in Moscow to negotiate with Assad’s former ally.

Russia maintains a strategic interest in Syria, which it considers a vital component of its geopolitical influence in the Middle East.

There are two key Russian bases in Syria: the Hmeymim air base in Latakia province and the naval base in Tartus, the only Russian base in the Mediterranean.

In the past years, the Kremlin has also used the situation in Syria to control migration flows to Europe, as well as to test new weapons in combat conditions.

In March, it was announced that the United States had handed over a list of conditions to the new Syrian leadership that must be met to ease sanctions.

The document did not mention the clause on closing Russia’s access to the bases in Tartus and Hmeymim, a requirement that the US Senate had previously insisted on.