The Syrian leader made the statement during a visit to Moscow, adding that Russia’s presence should become permanent.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he would welcome any Russian proposal to build new military bases and increase troop levels in the Middle Eastern country and suggested that Moscow’s military presence there should become permanent.
When Russia intervened in the war in Syria in 2015, four years after protests began in the country, it helped tip the balance in al-Assad’s favor and ensured the Syrian leader’s survival despite Western calls for his ouster.
Al-Assad, who met President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Wednesday, backed Moscow’s war in Ukraine and told Russia’s state news agency RIA that Damascus recognizes the Kremlin’s claimed territories in Ukraine.
Syria, al-Assad said, would welcome any Russian proposal to build new military bases and increase the number of Russian troops – and said they didn’t have to be temporary.
“We think expanding Russia’s presence in Syria is a good thing,” al-Assad told RIA in an interview published on Thursday. “Russia’s military presence in any country should not be temporary.”
“We believe that if Russia has a desire to expand bases or increase their number, it is a technical or logistical problem.”
Al-Assad’s years as president were marked by the conflict that began with peaceful protests in 2011 before escalating into a multi-faceted conflict that fragmented the country and drew foreign friends and foes alike.
He has retaken territory from the opposition with the help of Russia and Iran, but all three have been accused of war crimes by human rights groups.
In addition to the Hmeimim air base, from which Russia launches airstrikes in support of al-Assad, Moscow also controls the Tartus naval base in Syria, its only naval base in the Mediterranean that has been used since the days of the Soviet Union.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said in January that Russia and Syria had restored Al-Jarrah airbase in northern Syria for shared use. The small base east of Aleppo was recaptured by ISIL (ISIS) militants in 2017.
In Moscow, al-Assad thanked Putin for the aid Russia had given Syria after last month’s devastating earthquake.
Syria stands by Russia on the Ukraine issue, said al-Assad.
“As this is my first visit since the start of the military special operation in Ukraine, I would like to reiterate the Syrian position in support of this special operation,” al-Assad told Putin, according to a Kremlin transcript.
Syria recognizes Ukrainian territories captured by Russia as Russian, al-Assad said.
“I’m saying these are Russian territories and even if the war hadn’t happened, these are historically Russian territories,” he told RIA.
Russia has claimed about a fifth of Ukraine and says the lands are now part of Russia. Ukraine says it will fight until every last Russian soldier is expelled from Ukraine. The West considers the annexation of Ukrainian territory illegal.
Al-Assad said Russia and Syria plan to sign an economic cooperation agreement in the coming weeks.