Russia’s Hmeimim Air Base in Syria, which played a critical role in shifting the balance of power during the civil war starting in late 2015, has reportedly seen a significant decline in activity.
In the summer of 2015, as the Bashar al-Assad regime began losing ground to opposition forces, Russia answered Assad’s call for military assistance. Russian fighter jets were deployed to Hmeimim, a strategic air base that Moscow used as a launch point for its operations in the region.
By late September 2015, after coordinating an air corridor through the Caspian Sea, Iran, and Iraq, Russian forces were ready to launch airstrikes. On September 30, Russian jets initiated their first strikes against opposition groups, which played a major role in helping the Assad regime reclaim control over large parts of the country in the months that followed.
Up until November 2024, Russian air support was a key factor in Assad’s survival. Russian forces operated in coordination with U.S. air forces, which were more active in eastern Syria, to ensure deconfliction and prevent accidental clashes in the shared airspace.
