Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally granted asylum to ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who fled the country after opposition forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) made a rapid advance through Syria, Al Jazeera reported.
The move, which marks a dramatic shift in the region’s balance of power, has raised significant concerns about the future of Russia’s military presence in Syria, with both regional and international implications.
Peskov declined to provide specifics on al-Assad’s current location or whether Putin planned to meet with him.
Reports from Al Jazeera’s Yulia Shapovalova suggest that al-Assad was evacuated by a Russian plane from the Latakia airbase, one of the Kremlin’s most critical military facilities in Syria.
The broader implications of al-Assad’s removal are significant for Russia, which has heavily invested in Syria’s military infrastructure, particularly in the Tartous and Hmeimim bases. These facilities are essential to Russia’s ability to project power in the region, with Tartous serving as Moscow’s sole Mediterranean naval repair and replenishment hub.
While Peskov declined to comment directly on the future of Russia’s military presence in Syria, he did suggest that discussions with future Syrian leadership would shape Russia’s decisions moving forward. “This is all a subject for discussion with those who will be in power in Syria,” he said.
The decision to grant asylum to al-Assad also signals the Kremlin’s ongoing strategic interest in Syria, despite the rapid changes on the ground. While opposition forces led by HTS—formerly linked to al-Qaeda—have claimed significant territorial gains, the situation remains volatile, with uncertainty around who will ultimately control Syria.
Israel’s reaction to the upheaval in Syria has been swift and forceful. Israeli military carried out airstrikes on multiple sites in Syria on Sunday, targeting suspected chemical weapons storage and missile sites linked to Iran. Israel has long been concerned about the presence of Iranian-backed militias in Syria, which it sees as a direct threat to its security.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear that Israel would not allow the fallout from Syria’s instability to endanger its interests. “We will prevent weapons from falling into the hands of extremists,” he stated, referring to the Israeli military’s ongoing efforts to target weapons sites in Syria.
In addition to the airstrikes, Israel has taken the unprecedented step of seizing control of a buffer zone in the Golan Heights, an area it captured from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War.
The region is strategically important, and Netanyahu’s government has declared that the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria no longer holds, following the collapse of Al-Assad’s regime. Israeli forces have been deployed in the area, with military commanders warning civilians living near the Israeli-occupied portion of the Golan Heights to remain in their homes as the situation remains tense.
The collapse of the Syrian government under Assad’s rule has weakened Iran’s foothold in the region and diminished its ability to influence the situation.
Iran, a key ally of al-Assad, has long used Syria as a staging ground for its military operations and to project power across the Middle East. With al-Assad gone, Iran’s role in the region faces uncertain prospects.
Meanwhile, Türkiye, a long-time opponent of al-Assad, has emerged as a stronger regional player. Peskov noted that Russia continues to engage in dialogue with Türkiye and other regional powers, including Iran, as part of the Astana peace process, which has aimed to facilitate negotiations toward resolving the Syrian conflict.
As Russia grapples with the fallout from al-Assad’s removal, the international community is closely monitoring the situation. Peskov’s comments indicate that Russia is prepared for further dialogue with all parties in the region, even as the future of Syria remains uncertain. With critical military assets at stake and the broader geopolitical implications of Syria’s collapse unfolding, the Kremlin will likely have to navigate a complex shifting landscape in the coming months.