Syria and Russia agree to convert Hmeimim and Tartus bases into joint training centers

Agreement announced

Syria's foreign ministry announced on August 9 a memorandum of understanding with Russia governing the future of Moscow's two remaining military installations in the country: the Hmeimim airbase and the Tartus naval base, both on Syria's Mediterranean coast. The deal, reached after a year and a half of negotiations, will see military facilities transformed into joint Russian-Syrian training and qualification centers. Damascus regains control of civilian facilities at Hmeimim and the commercial section of the Tartus port. The transition is to be completed within three months, according to Syria's official news agency Sana. Moscow has not publicly commented on the agreement.

Strategic significance

Hmeimim and Tartus constituted Russia's only official military outposts outside the former Soviet space. Both remained operational throughout the negotiations. At the peak of its deployment in 2024, Russia maintained up to 114 bases and military positions across Syria, according to Syrian media outlet Enab Baladi. By 2025, that number had fallen to three, and earlier this year Russia withdrew its forces from Qamishli airport in the Kurdish-majority northeast, leaving only the two coastal installations.

Civilian handover

Syrian foreign minister Asaad al-Chaibani inspected the facilities covered by the agreement on Sunday. Syria's Civil Aviation Authority, through its director Omar al-Hasri, announced it had taken control of Latakia International Airport, a civilian facility adjacent to Hmeimim whose operations were closely tied to the Russian military presence. Al-Hasri said the authority would work on the airport's rehabilitation, calling it an important step toward reintegrating Syria's airports into the national civil aviation system.

Political backdrop

Russia was a key ally of former president Bashar al-Assad during Syria's civil war, which began with Arab Spring protests in 2011. Moscow's military intervention in 2015 helped turn the tide in Assad's favor through airstrikes on rebel-held areas. Assad was overthrown in December 2024 by a coalition of rebel forces led by current president Ahmed al-Sharaa, and fled to Russia with his family. Despite Russia's close ties to the former regime, the new authorities in Damascus never severed relations with Moscow. Al-Sharaa has been received twice in Moscow by Vladimir Putin since taking power. During his last visit in January, Putin praised al-Sharaa's efforts to restore Syria's territorial integrity. Damascus has repeatedly demanded that Russia extradite Assad.

Analysts' assessment

Alexey Muraviev, senior research fellow in defence and strategic studies at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia, told Al Jazeera that the agreement reflects mutual dependence.

The agreement between Russia and the Syrian government indicates that both countries need each other.

He added that Damascus is likely not interested in terminating its prolonged relationship with Russia. For Damascus, maintaining a Russian military presence also serves as a counterbalance to Turkey, whose forces are deployed in northern Syria. For Moscow, the arrangement preserves a foothold on the Mediterranean coast and access to warm-water ports, avoiding a complete withdrawal from a country where it has invested heavily for decades. The Carnegie Center's Alexander Baunov noted that Russia's 2015 intervention in Syria helped Moscow break the diplomatic isolation that followed its annexation of Crimea, forcing the international community to engage with Russia as a global actor rather than solely on Ukraine-related matters.