Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to meet with Syrian officials in Moscow

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will host top Syrian officials in Moscow for a series of talks Tuesday, as Russia attempts to establish firm ties with post-Assad Syria.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra are expected to hold talks with Russian officials on bilateral relations and “other issues of mutual interest,” according to reports.

The visit marks the second time the Syrian ministers have traveled to Moscow since the fall of former President Bashar Assad’s government in December 2024. In July, Mr. al-Shaibani met with Mr. Lavrov and Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov to discuss the evolving relationship between Moscow and Syria’s interim government. He also met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa made a trip to Moscow for a summit meeting with Russian officials, including Mr. Putin, in October. They discussed the future owners of Russian military bases in Syria.

Russia was a firm ally of the Assad regime, and Mr. Putin’s government allowed Mr. al-Assad and his family to flee to Russia after Syrian coalition forces toppled his government late last year. Since then, Moscow has sought to rebuild ties with Syria to maintain an economic and military foothold in the region.

But Mr. al-Sharaa has launched a worldwide campaign to find partners for Syria in efforts to rebuild after more than a decade of civil war. Specifically, Syria has grown close to Washington over the past year, relying on U.S. diplomats to broker a disengagement agreement and persuade the Kurdish SDF forces to integrate into the Syrian Security Forces.

President Trump this month signed the National Defense Authorization Act, which includes a repeal of the Caesar Act sanctions. The sanctions, passed in 2019, levied harsh economic restrictions on individuals and companies that did business with the Assad regime. Mr. al-Sharaa’s government loudly advocated for the removal of the sanctions, arguing that the influx of private and federal investment in Syria would bring stability.