Two sources told Reuters that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa had asked, at a meeting in Damascus on January 29, to cancel loans taken from Russia during the rule of Bashar al-Assad.
Syria, which was largely debt-free before the war, now has foreign liabilities of between $20 billion and $23 billion, Finance Minister Mohammed Abzaid said last month, without specifying how much of that debt was owed to Russia.
During the three-hour meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, Syrian officials raised another key issue, Assad’s extradition to the Syrian authorities, but only in general terms, suggesting that it would not be a major obstacle to restoring relations if he were not extradited, one of the sources said.
A senior Russian official said Russia would not agree to extradite Assad, and had not been asked to do so.
According to Reuters, the sources said, “The new leadership in Syria does not seem to want to expel Russia completely, but rather wants to keep the Russian bases in exchange for diplomatic support and financial compensation from Moscow.”
According to the sources, the new administration’s talks with Russia addressed Syria’s debts to Russia, which range from $20 billion to $23 billion, and the new leadership’s demand to cancel them.
Damascus demanded that Moscow return the Syrian funds deposited in Russia by Assad, but Moscow denied their existence, according to the sources.