The Syrian regime of Bashar al -Assad, which has been held for a long time through the support of the Kremlin, suffered another defeat. According to the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (GUR), the insurgent forces took control of key objects in Damascus, including the Assad's residence, government agencies and the Central Office of National Television.
Against the backdrop of these events, Russia began withdrawing its military assets from Syria. In particular, the Admiral Grigorovich frigate of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation and the engineer Trubin left the naval base in Tartus and went to the Mediterranean.
It is also reported to evacuate the residues of Russian equipment and arms from the airbase in Khmeimim, which is carried out by military aircraft. The onset of the opposition spread to the province of Latakia, Hama and Tartus, which made it impossible to keep the Kremlin with its military bases in the region. According to GUR, the loss of bases in Tartus and Khmeimimi means the final defeat of Russia in the Middle East. The intelligence called the Kremlin's actions "a shameful escape of the Russian contingent from the territory of the Arab Republic."
Events in Syria show the collapse of many years of Russian strategy in the region. The agreement concluded between Assad and the Kremlin, which allowed the deployment of Russian military bases in exchange for military support, now loses meaning. This not only weakens Russia's position in Syria, but also deprives it of an important geopolitical bridgehead.
