Russia bolstering military presence in Syria: Analysts

The Bassel al-Assad Airbase in Syria’s northwestern Lattakia province -- believed to host 32 planes, 16 helicopters, nine tanks, two land-to-air missile defense systems and a 2,000-strong staff of Russian officers -- represents Russia’s most significant military asset in Syria.

Russia is now directly involved in the Syria conflict, with the ostensible aim of degrading the Daesh militant group, which since last year has held significant territory in the war-torn country.

Russian warplanes on Wednesday struck targets inside Syria for the first time, according to a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman, who said the strikes had targeted Daesh munitions depots, vehicles and communications centers.

Syria is a significant ally of Moscow and represents Russia’s only presence in the Mediterranean area.

For much of the Syria conflict, now in its fifth year, Moscow has been providing weapons to the Syrian regime.

News of Russian fighters actively taking part in the fight against anti-Assad opposition forces has recently appeared in both the western and Russian media.

Airbases represent the backbone of Russia’s military presence in Syria. While Russia also has a naval base in Tartus, which is still important in terms of logistics, it is not considered as important as it used to be.

According to a 2012 report by the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russia is using the Tartus Port -- which lacks any command-and-control capacity -- only to provide the Syrian regime with arms and ammunition.

In mid-2013, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said the Tartus base no longer had any strategic significance, going on to announce plans to reduce the number of personnel deployed there.  

A subsequent statement by the Russian Defense Ministry, however, appeared to refute this assertion, saying that the Tartus base still maintained its importance.  

According to Russian newspaper Kommersant, 1,700 Russian personnel remain deployed at the base.

Russia’s support for the Syrian regime now goes beyond simply supplying it with weapons and technical support, however, and it now appears Russian troops are directly engaging anti-Assad opposition forces.

According to an analysis piece published on Sept. 17 by the Washington-based ISW, Russia has been bolstering its strength in Lattakia since July of this year.

The ISW analysis said that satellite imagery had verified that Russian BTR-82A tanks had been brought to Syria and had been used against anti-Assad opposition forces.

The analysis stated that Russia hoped to expand the capacity of the Bassel al-Assad airbase and was building housing units sufficient to accommodate a 1,000-strong staff, along with an air-control tower.

The analysis went on to cite U.S. sources as saying that tanks, heavy artillery, armored vehicles and prefabricated houses -- along with aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles -- would continue to be brought to the base in the short-term future.

Russia has reportedly been carrying out similar upgrades at the Al-Hamidiyah airbase near Tartus, according to the ISW.