Without bases in Syria Putin loses positions in Mediterranean - U.S. general

The loss of military bases in Syria in the event of the overthrow of the Bashar Assad regime would deprive Vladimir Putin of the ability to influence the situation in the Mediterranean.

This opinion was expressed by the former commander of the U.S. Army European Command, General Mark Hertling (Ret.), who spoke with CNN, reports Ukrinform.

Hertling recalled that there are Russian naval and air bases in Syria.

"Both of those bases give him (Putin - ed.) access to the Mediterranean. Once he loses that because of a potential overthrow of Assad, he has lost capability to influence the Mediterranean," the former commander said.

He stressed that Russia has also lost some of its influence in the Black Sea based on the ongoing war with Ukraine, and Russian naval bases in the Baltics, in Kaliningrad, are also under threat.

“You’re seeing Putin being really tossed into a corner. These bases are all critical to their military presence in these areas, and the increased rebel activity in northern Syria and the Turkish incursions have heightened concerns about the Russian supply routes even into the area,” Hertling stressed.

The general added that the Russians are facing economic problems and reduced assistance from allies.

“As calm as Putin and his spokesman may appear to be, they don’t reason to feel very good about what is going on,” Hertling believes.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) notes that Russia is evacuating naval forces from its base in the Syrian city of Tartus. This may indicate that the Kremlin has no intention of sending significant reinforcements to support the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the short term.