The Media Line: For Syrians, Bloody Memories Loom as al-Sharaa Courts Partnership With Moscow 

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For Syrians, Bloody Memories Loom as al-Sharaa Courts Partnership With Moscow 

Talks in Moscow focus on Russia’s military footprint, accountability for Assad, and contract revisions as Damascus tries to balance pragmatism with a demand for justice 

By Rizik Alabi/The Media Line 

[DAMASCUS] Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week, in his first visit to Russia since the ouster of Kremlin ally Bashar Assad. The talks sought to recalibrate relations, review Russia’s military footprint at Tartus and Hmeimim, and address demands that Assad face international justice—an agenda shaped by years of Russian airstrikes and the war’s civilian toll. 

From a camp on the Syrian-Turkish border, Umm Muhammad followed the meeting with her husband, who lost his legs in a prior Russian strike on Idlib. She told The Media Line, “Russia must apologize to Syrians and provide compensation because it killed thousands and caused the disability of thousands as well. I only wished for that.” 

The Kremlin session opened with cautious public remarks. Al-Sharaa said, “Damascus seeks to build strategic relations with Moscow based on respect for sovereignty and mutual interests,” while Putin cited more than eight decades of ties, calling them a “deeply rooted friendship.” Russian officials, according to Arab media accounts of the closed-door discussions, dismissed as “unrealistic” any move to surrender Assad, insisting he “was an elected president” and warning a handover “could expose him to liquidation.” Putin later stressed that the relationship “has always been friendly and sincere,” and that “the interests of the Syrian people were the basis of Moscow’s policies.” Al-Sharaa, for his part, affirmed that “Syria will adhere to all agreements signed with Russia.” 

The visit carried a heavy moral frame. Many Syrians view Russia as a direct party to their tragedy and want a candid review of a relationship they see as burdened by ethical and political flaws. The question that framed the trip in Damascus policy circles—What do we really want from Russia?—hung over every issue. 

The delegation—foreign and defense ministers, the intelligence chief, and the presidency’s secretary-general—signaled the scope of talks. On security, Damascus raised the future of Russian bases; possible reactivation of the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement with Israel; expansion of Russian police roles along contact lines to limit flashpoints; coordination against terrorists in the desert; and updates to Syrian army systems. The agenda also touched on the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and border deconfliction. 

Justice questions were placed squarely on the table. Syrian envoys floated options to lift Moscow’s protection of Assad or to cooperate with an internal judicial process that could put him in international custody. Moscow pushed back, citing risk to Assad’s life and legitimacy claims. In Damascus, officials acknowledged the Kremlin’s red lines while arguing that raising accountability asserts a principle—even if the Kremlin will not bend. They pointed to Russia’s history of sheltering ousted allies such as Eduard Shevardnadze, Askar Akayev, and Viktor Yanukovych as evidence that extradition is improbable. 

Economics formed a second pillar. Damascus is reviewing legacy deals signed under the previous regime, including the Palmyra phosphate concession that critics say locked in unfair profit shares, port management arrangements, fertilizer complex contracts, and broader commercial privileges. Syrian officials want to rebalance terms while keeping Russian investment engaged and supply chains intact. 

The optics fueled a sharp split at home and in the diaspora. State media touted a “warm welcome” and “positive outcomes.” Critics, recalling Aleppo, Ghouta, and Idlib, saw the image of al-Sharaa next to Putin as a breach of memory and justice. Syrian political activist Milad Shahab, speaking from France during his interview with The Media Line, argued that Russia functioned as the air arm that kept Assad in power and that the encounter offends families still waiting for accountability. By contrast, political activist Haitham Mahmoud told The Media Line that Damascus cannot sever ties given dependence on Russian equipment and the need to keep the south and the desert from sliding back into security chaos. 

On the sidelines, al-Sharaa met members of the Syrian diaspora in Russia, urging them to invest and to participate in reconstruction and private-sector growth. 

For Damascus, the target is not a moral ally but a negotiable partner—managing an unavoidable relationship with cold calculations that balance necessity against accountability. Al-Sharaa’s visit reads less as restored trust than as an attempt to tame a relationship forged by war and destruction, to move toward stability without erasing Syria’s claim to justice or its collective memory.