Syria and Russia agree to convert two bases into joint training centers

Syria and Russia have signed a memorandum of understanding to transform Moscow’s two military bases on Syria’s Mediterranean coast into joint training and capacity-building centers. The agreement, announced on August 9 by Syria’s official news agency SANA, represents the most concrete restructuring of Russia’s overseas military footprint since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. The deal covers the Hmeimim airbase near Latakia and the Tartus naval facility, both of which are Russia’s only military installations outside the former Soviet Union. What the deal actually changes Under the MoU, both bases will be converted from active military operations hubs into joint training centers within a three-month window. Civilian facilities at the two locations will be transferred to Syrian control immediately. The negotiations leading to this agreement stretched over nearly 18 months, beginning shortly after Assad’s ouster. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin twice since taking office, with military cooperation sitting at the top of each agenda. The strategic backdrop Russia established the Hmeimim airbase in 2015, when it intervened milita...