Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Kremlin on Wednesday (January 28) for talks that were set to include the sensitive issue of Russia's future military presence in Syria, sources on both sides said.

Since Sharaa's Islamist coalition toppled Russia's ally Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Moscow has been working to build relations with him and ensure a continued military foothold in the country in order to bolster its influence in the Middle East.

Reuters reported this week that Russia was withdrawing forces from Qamishli airport in northeast Syria, although it was expected to maintain its larger Hmeimim air base and Tartous naval facility on Syria's Mediterranean coast.

A Syrian foreign ministry source said the move by Moscow was interpreted in Damascus as a gesture aimed at building goodwill and signalling that Russia would not be drawn into fighting between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces as Sharaa attempts to assert central authority over the entire country.

In televised opening remarks, Putin told Sharaa: "I want to congratulate you on the fact that the process of restoring the territorial integrity of Syria is gaining momentum."

Sharaa, on his second visit to Russia since ousting Assad in 2024, thanked Putin for help in stabilising the situation in Syria and the wider region.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JANUARY 28, 2026) (RUSSIAN POOL – Access all)

1. SYRIAN PRESIDENT AHMED AL-SHARAA LEAVING CAR

2. AL-SHARAA WALKING UPSTAIRS IN KREMLIN

3. GUARDS OF HONOUR OPENING DOORS, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN ENTERING ROOM, GREETING AL-SHARAA

4. (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN PRESIDENT, VLADIMIR PUTIN, SAYING: "We are very glad to see you again in Moscow. Since our last meeting, time has not been wasted. Much has been done in terms of restoring our bilateral relations. We have also managed to break the deadlock in economic cooperation, with growth of over 4%. This may not be as ambitious as we would like, but it is still noticeable progress, and we absolutely must maintain this remarkable trend."

5. AL-SHARAA LISTENING TO PUTIN

6. WIDE SHOT OF MEETING

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SYRIAN PRESIDENT, AHMED AL-SHARAA, SAYING:

"We have many mutual topics that I hope we can discuss in detail during this fruitful meeting. I believe that Syria has made significant progress and has successfully navigated many obstacles over the past year, the latest of which was the challenge of unifying Syrian land, which Syria's position over the past year has been in support of this unification. Russia certainly plays an important role in stabilizing the situation not only in Syria but in the (Middle East) region as a whole. We hope these efforts continue so that the Middle East can be in the best condition for stability and development, and for it to progress from a condition of destruction to a condition of stability and development. So thank you very much, Mr. President."

8. SYRIAN DELEGATION LISTENING

9. PUTIN SPEAKING

10. RUSSIAN DELEGATION LISTENING (FIRST LINE FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: RUSSIAN DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER ALEXANDER NOVAK, KREMLIN FOREIGN POLICY AIDE YURI USHAKOV, VLADIMIR PUTIN'S ECONOMIC ADVISOR, MAXIM ORESHKIN;THIRD LINE FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: RUSSIAN DEPUTY DEFENCE MINISTER YUNUS-BEK EVKUROV, CHIEF OF THE MAIN DIRECTORATE OF THE GENERAL STAFF OF THE RUSSIAN ARMED FORCES IGOR KOSTYUKOV)

11. MEETING IN PROGRESS