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August 16, 2026

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Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the Grand Kremlin Palace, Moscow, Oct. 15, 2025.

Analysis

Beyond bases: Russia’s foothold in Syria shrinks even as ties endure

Syria's relations with Russia have entered a new phase with a deal reorganizing Moscow’s military presence, and leaving the door open to continued economic relations and influence.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Colombia's new president, Abelardo de la Espriella, delivers a speech at the Pichincha Battalion after being sworn in, in Cali, Colombia, on Aug. 7, 2026.

Syria lodges UN complaint against Colombia’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over Golan

Bogota’s move marked a foreign policy shift under new right-wing President Abelardo de la Espriella, reversing Petro-era policies that strained ties with Israel.

Bashar Al Assad

Syrian court sentences Bashar al-Assad, brother to death for war crimes

Ousted President Bashar al-Assad and his younger brother Maher al-Assad were both sentenced to death in absentia for war crimes along with several other defendants.

Latest News

New deal reduces Russia’s military presence in Syria: What to know

A Syrian rebel fighter looks on as he stands at an inspection checkpoint for incoming vehicles before a Russian flag and Russian soldiers behind manning the entrance of the Russian-leased Syrian military base of Hmeimim in Latakia province in western Syria on Dec. 29, 2024.

Syria's Shibani updates Turkey on Kurds' integration, slams Israel during Ankara visit

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani meets with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, in Ankara, Aug. 6, 2026.

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Beatrice Farhat

Associate Editor (Lebanon)

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Danny Makki

In London, reporting on Syrian politics and culture

Ali Hashem

In Doha, reporting on Iran, regional politics, conflict

Cagatay Cebe

In Istanbul, reporting on security and counterterrorism

Syrians who are picking up their passports queue up in front of the Syrian Embassy in Cairo June 16, 2013. Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi said he had cut all diplomatic ties with Damascus on Saturday and called for a no-fly zone over Syria, pitching the most populous Arab state firmly against President Bashar al-Assad. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10PIR

Cairo’s ‘Little Syria’ Testimony To Despair of War

More than 75,000 Syrian refugees in Egypt live on the edge, wondering if they will ever return home.

A man checks an apartment on a damaged building at the site of a blast in the town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, near the Turkish-Syrian border, May 13, 2013. Syria's information minister has blamed Turkey's government for deadly car bombings near the Syrian border and branded Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan a "murderer", state-run Russian TV company RT reported on Monday. It said he repeated a denial of Syrian involvement in car bombings that killed 46 people on Saturday in the Turkish border town of Reyhan

Turkey’s Syria Policy in Shambles Over Support for Jihadists

A host of misjudgments by the Erdogan government about Syria, including reliance on radical Islamists, has led to new headaches for Turkey.

Syrian Kurdish children with luggage wait to cross into Iraqi territory outside the Peshabur border gate at the Syrian-Iraq border near the Dohuk province, February 2, 2013. Kurds on either side of the river Tigris that runs between Syria and Iraq are linked by kinship, a history of oppression and now by fuel lines and boats ferrying food and medical aid across the waters that divide them. Picture taken February 2, 2013. To match story SYRIA-KURDS/AID REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS

Syrian Kurds Reject SNC, Al-Qaeda

Syrian Kurds prefer to keep their options open for autonomy in northern Syria.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry talk during their meeting in Moscow, May 7, 2013. Russia and the United States agreed on Tuesday to try to arrange an international conference this month on ending the civil war in Syria, and said both sides in the conflict should take part. REUTERS/Mladen Antonov/Pool (RUSSIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTXZE30

How the US Can Move Russia on Syria

A concerted US effort to find a political settlement offers the opportunity to turn Russia against the Assad regime, even if the Geneva II conference fails.

Syrian Kurds Reassure Turkey

The leading Syrian Kurdish group claims it is not seeking to break away from Syria as tensions escalate with Ankara.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu speaks to the media after the Friends of Syria alliance meeting in Amman May 22, 2013. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXZX4H

Turkey’s Kurdish Question Extends to Syria

The Justice and Development Party (AKP) government is struggling with whether its interests are better served by jihadists or Kurdish groups controlling areas of northern Syria.

A Free Syrian Army member inspects his weapon beside a checkpoint to siege the Kurdish city of Afrin, which is under the control of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in the Aleppo countryside June 30, 2013. REUTERS/Hamid Khatib (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT) - RTX117H8

The Struggle for Syrian Kurdistan

Al-Monitor covers Syrian Kurdistan, the rebel siege of Aleppo, maids in Saudi Arabia and the Iraqi sex trade.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu addresses the media in Ankara June 13, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10M6J

Ankara Warns Against Kurdish Autonomy in Syria

While the Kurdistan Democratic Union (PYD) takes control of Syrian territory close to the Turkish border, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warns Kurds against declaring an autonomous Kurdistan.

Syrian Kurds Prepare For Self-Governance

The PKK-affiliated Democratic Union Party is consulting the political parties of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq on plans to form an interim government for Kurdish-controlled enclaves in Syria.

Members of the Free Syrian Army are seen in the northern Syrian town of Ras al-Ain as they are pictured from the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar, Sanliurfa province January 25, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR3CXJT

Clashes Re-Erupt in Syria Between Al-Qaeda, Kurds

Fighting between the Kurdish People’s Defense Units (YPG) and the al-Qaeda-affiliated Jahbat al-Nusra killed at least four Jabhat al-Nusra fighters in the city of Ras al-Ain, Syria.

An Israeli security forces member stands by as a Jordanian helicopter starts to lift off to take U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Amman, in Jerusalem, June 29, 2013. Kerry was bound for a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Amman, Jordan. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX115RJ

US Outs Israel on Syria Attack? Blame Edward Snowden

Why are the Americans providing the international media with information about alleged covert Israeli operations while the Europeans are ratcheting up the settlement boycott?

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem July 14, 2013. REUTERS/Abir Sultan/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11MDX

Squeaks in US-Israeli Relations

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's comments on "Face the Nation" about what the US should do about Iran stir controversy.