A Russian convoy has delivered supplies to Syria’s Tartous port for the first time since Moscow and Damascus reached a military facilities agreement in August, signalling that Russia is continuing to support its bases in the country.
The four-vessel convoy arrived on 7 September, with supplies destined for the facility at Tartous and the Hmeimim air base in western Syria.
The movement follows 18 months of negotiations and a memorandum of understanding announced by Syria in early August. Under the agreement, both sites are to become “joint training and capacity-building centres”, according to the Syrian foreign ministry, while Damascus assumes control of civilian operations.
Satellite imagery showed the cargo vessel Sparta docked at Tartous alongside the navy replenishment oiler Akademik Pashin. The tanker General Skobelev remained offshore.
Sparta has long been used to handle Russian military logistics in Syria. Both the vessel and the tanker are under Western sanctions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Syrian counterpart, Ahmed al-Sharaa, have continued discussions over the future of the bases, which have served as Moscow’s principal military footholds in the Mediterranean and the Middle East.
Moscow intervened militarily during Syria’s 13-year civil war to support former president Bashar al-Assad. His removal in 2024 significantly curtailed Russia’s influence across the region.
Russia has since sought to rebuild relations with Syria’s new administration while trying to preserve its only two military facilities outside the former Soviet Union. Damascus continues to demand Assad’s extradition; he is currently sheltering in Moscow.
