Russia will discuss the fate of its military bases with the new leadership of Syria after the situation in the country stabilizes, Dmitry Peskov said.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin personally decided to grant political asylum to Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has resigned. This was announced by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov at a briefing on Monday, December 9.
“Of course, such decisions cannot be made without the head of state. This is his decision,” he told reporters.
This is how Peskov commented on the information that Assad had arrived in Moscow, where he was granted political asylum.
“We have nothing to tell you about Mr. Assad’s whereabouts right now,” he said, adding that Putin is not currently scheduled to meet with Assad.
The Kremlin spokesman also said that Russia will discuss the fate of its military bases with the new leadership of Syria after the situation in the country stabilizes.
“Of course, this is a very important issue, and now everything that is necessary and possible is being done to get in touch with those who can provide security. And, of course, our military is also taking all necessary precautions,” he said in response to a question about Russian bases in Syria.
“We are currently witnessing a period of transformation, extreme instability, so of course it will take time and then a serious conversation with those who will be in power will be needed,” the Kremlin spokesman added.
The day before, the Russian state news agency TASS reported that ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his family were in Moscow and that Russia had granted them asylum.
Recall that on December 8, rebel forces in Damascus declared the capital “free” from Assad. They said that state institutions would remain under the supervision of the former prime minister until the official transfer of power.
