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Bases deal, not Gaza
Syria and Russia reached an agreement on the future of two strategic bases on the Mediterranean coast, with Syria’s Foreign Ministry saying the Hmeimim air base near Latakia and the Tartus naval base would end their use as military strongholds for Moscow.
“Syria will take control of the Hmeimim air base and the commercial port of Tartus”
Under the arrangement, Syria will take control of the Hmeimim air base and the commercial port of Tartus under its civilian administration, while military facilities at both locations will become "joint training and qualification centers," according to the Syrian Foreign Ministry.
The memorandum was finalized after about a year and a half of negotiations, and the transition is set to be completed within three months, with civilian facilities at both Hmeimim and Tartus to be officially handed over to Damascus in the interim.
AP described the same framework as Russian forces giving up control of two strategic bases on the Mediterranean coast, to be used as joint Russia-Syria training centers under a new agreement between the two countries.
Who said what
Syria’s Foreign Ministry said the new arrangements represent a "reorganizing of the Russian presence" along Syria’s coast, and it framed the deal as the most significant development since negotiations began about a year and a half ago.
Roya News reported that Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani visited the sites "to inspect the facilities and installations included in the historic memorandum of understanding," as SANA said.
Oman Observer similarly quoted Syria’s foreign ministry via SANA, saying the Hmeimim airbase and Tartus naval base would be turned into "joint training and capacity-building centres" and that the memorandum set "a time limit of no more than three months" to complete the process.
Reuters said the Syrian state would take over management of civilian facilities, including Hmeimim airport and the commercial berth at Tartous port, and repurpose military facilities as joint training and qualification centres with the transition to be completed within three months.
Regional leverage and next steps
The deal is presented as preserving mutual interests while shifting the bases into Syrian civilian administration, with Reuters adding that Syria’s General Authority for Ports and Customs said Syria would take over commercial sites previously operated by Russia at Tartous port, including Pier No. 4.
“allowing them to be gradually integrated into the country's civilian administration”
The Jerusalem Post said the Syrian state would take over management of civilian facilities, including Hmeimim airport and the commercial berth at Tartous port, and it described military facilities being repurposed as joint training and qualification centers under new arrangements preserving the interests of both sides.
Arab News quoted International Crisis Group senior Syria analyst Nanar Hawach saying the memorandum’s significance was "what it reveals about leverage," because a transitional government had renegotiated the terms of a great power’s presence.
CNN tied the agreement to broader diplomatic movement, noting that Al-Sharaa has visited President Vladimir Putin in Moscow twice since taking power, with the two Mediterranean bases being key points of discussion, and it said Russia did not immediately comment on the agreement.
