Syria's Foreign Ministry announced that Russia will relinquish control of the Hmeimim air base and the Tartus naval port, marking the most significant shift in their relations since the start of negotiations.
Syria's new leadership announced on Monday, August 10, 2026, that an agreement has been reached with Moscow to hand over control of two strategic military bases on the Mediterranean coast. Russian forces will withdraw from the Hmeimim air base and the commercial section of the Tartus naval port, significantly reducing the Kremlin's military influence in the eastern Mediterranean.
Syria's Foreign Ministry stated that the military facilities at both locations will become "joint training centers," describing the new arrangements as a reorganization of Russia's presence along the Syrian coast. "This move marks the most significant development since the start of negotiations about a year and a half ago, paving the way for a new phase in Syrian-Russian relations," the official statement read.
Syria's General Directorate for Ports and Customs released specific details of the deal. "Following a series of talks between Syria and Russia, an agreement has been reached that provides for the transfer to the Syrian side of the commercial sections previously held by the Russian side in the port of Tartus, including berth number 4 and the warehouses and facilities around it," the statement, carried by Russia's state news agency Tass, said. It also emphasized that "Syria and Russia have agreed to transfer the commercial sections of the Tartus port to the Syrian side."
Interestingly, the Russian side has not yet officially commented on the agreement, according to the U.S. news agency AP. Moscow has not issued its own statement so far; instead, the state-run Tass agency merely relayed what the Syrian side published, which is unusual for such a significant geopolitical move.
The Hmeimim and Tartus bases were key Russian military outposts throughout Syria's civil war, which lasted from 2011 to 2024. Russia was the main political and military ally of ousted President Bashar al-Assad. The situation changed dramatically in December 2024, when Islamist rebels led by Ahmad al-Sharaa, the current interim president and former leader of the Al-Nusra Front (Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria), overthrew Assad. Assad fled to Russia, which granted him asylum.
The Hmeimim air base is located near the city of Jableh in Latakia province and was visited by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2017. The Tartus naval base has served for decades as a logistics hub for the Russian Navy in the Mediterranean. As recently as October 2025, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Damascus was interested in preserving Russian military bases, but that they could be repurposed for other functions.
