Russia hands Syrian bases to Damascus as it scales back overseas forces

On August 9 Russia and Syria concluded a basing agreement that transfers the Mediterranean-coastal Tartus naval base and the Khmeimem airfield to Syrian authority, with Russia keeping joint training and qualification centres. President Vladimir Putin later held a phone call with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, reaffirming the commitment to the deal. The arrangement is interpreted as a sign of Russia's diminishing ability to sustain far-flung deployments after incurring over a million casualties and losing a sizable portion of its Black Sea fleet in the conflict with Ukraine.

Moscow is also pulling forces from outposts in Tajikistan, Armenia and Georgia, curbing its capacity to intervene in other hotspots such as Mali's civil war. Nevertheless, Russia remains a leading arms exporter to Syria, which continues to depend on Moscow for weapons and energy. The United States and European partners are urged to keep supplying Ukraine and to tighten sanctions, including the Lindsey Graham-crafted bill targeting Russian energy imports.