Russia resupplies Syria air base as it seeks to maintain foothold: WSJ

DAMASCUS

Russia resupplied its air base in Syria through a cargo ship delivery last month, signaling Moscow’s intention to maintain its strategic military foothold in the country, according to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Citing unnamed U.S. officials and reviewed satellite images, the WSJ reported on June 1 that the cargo ship Sparta left the Russian city of St. Petersburg in March and arrived at Syria’s Tartus port in May.

The report described the delivery, made while the vessel was escorted by Russian navy ships for much of its journey, as the first such resupply mission since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

According to some U.S. officials, the vessel was carrying equipment for the nearby Russian air base at Khmeimim. The report noted that its owner is under U.S. sanctions for delivering weapons on Russia’s behalf.

The move indicates Russia has retained use of the base despite Assad’s fall, the report said.

The WSJ quoted Aron Lund, a Syria expert at the Swedish Defense Research Agency, as saying he believes Russia succeeded in convincing Damascus to keep control of its bases.

The report also said the ship is part of a small fleet Russia has used for clandestine shipments of weapons and other military equipment in the region.

“Some U.S. officials said the Sparta’s resupply mission didn’t raise alarm bells, because the Syrian government’s ties with Moscow are known and the military equipment is far from American interests, primarily in the country’s northeast,” it added.

The report said Russia withdrew many of its personnel from Syria after Assad’s fall, but cited a U.S. official familiar with intelligence assessments as saying that hundreds of Russian personnel remain in the country.

Russia maintains two key military facilities in Syria: A naval logistics base in Tartus and the Khmeimim air base in the northwestern province of Latakia.

The future of the facilities was also discussed during a meeting between Syrian officials and Russian President Vladimir Putin in January, the report added.