ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russia remains committed to supporting Syria and maintaining its military presence there, despite the strain of its ongoing war in Ukraine, Russian Ambassador Andrey Baklanov said on Monday.
“At this moment, our support for the Syrian government continues; We provide military support so that the army can organize the war. We attack the gangs with our warplanes. Many of our experts emphasize that our military intervention should be more extensive,” Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Baklanov told Rudaw's Kamiz Shadadi.
The Syrian army on Monday said it began carrying out deadly strikes with top ally Russia against advancing rebels and jihadists in the north and has begun pushing them back across three provinces.
A coalition of Syrian rebel groups spearheaded by the jihadist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Syrian National Army (SNA) launched a major offensive against the Syrian army over the past week. They took control of the northern city of Aleppo, the largest in the country, and advanced their offensive into Hama province.
Baklanov said “If some parties, for example, America or Turkey, consider that we are so busy with Ukraine that Syria is no longer our concern,” that is not the case, and “they will always remain there.”
The Ukraine war has significantly strained Russia’s military and economic resources. However, Moscow continues to maintain a military presence in Syria, showing its commitment to retaining influence in the region. Relations with Turkey have also been tested, particularly over divergent policies in Syria and Ankara's support for Ukraine as a NATO member and US ally.
“We have two military bases in Syria, and they will always remain there, no matter how the situation develops. And that's why we need to protect the regime. With all its shortcomings and advantages, the current Syrian regime is better than any possible alternative,” Baklanov said.
Russia operates the Hmeimim airbase in Latakia and the Tartus naval base on Syria’s Mediterranean coast, both critical for projecting power in the Middle East. Moscow has used its presence to assert its role as a major geopolitical player while countering US influence in the region.
