New Syrian Leadership Agrees to Restore Relations with Russia Under Specific Conditions

The new Syrian Leadership has agreed to restore relations with Russia if there is an acknowledgment of past errors and compensation, Orda reports, citing SANA.

The Russian side confirmed support for the ongoing positive changes in Syria. The dialogue emphasized Russia's role in rebuilding trust with the Syrian people through specific measures in the form of compensation, reconstruction, and restoration, reported Syrian state agency SANA.

Syrian authorities reportedly stated during negotiations that "restoring relations must take into account past mistakes, respect the will of the Syrian people, and serve their interests."

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later gave scant details on the matter:

 We will continue dialogue with Syrian authorities, Peskov added, according to Interfax.

The fate of Russia's military bases in Syria remains in the balance.

Nothing is changing for now. This issue requires additional negotiations. We have agreed to continue more in-depth consultations on each area of our cooperation, Russia's Special Representative for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said.

A Reuters source claimed the Russian representatives were unwilling to concede the aforementioned mistakes, only agreeing to continue discussions.

Towards the end of last year, opposition forces began a large-scale offensive against Syrian army positions in Aleppo and Idlib provinces.

On December 8, they liberated Damascus, subsequently resulting in the end of Bashar al-Assad's reign over the nation.

Incidentally, Reuters also claims Syria's leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, had requested that Moscow hand over former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

Assad fled to Russia after being toppled.