Foreign governments, including Russia, Iran, China and Israel, have responded to the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday.
On Saturday evening and Sunday morning, Syrian rebels streamed into their country’s capital of Damascus as the 24-year-old regime of President Assad reportedly collapsed with Reuters reporting that Assad had fled the city.
The head of Syria’s main opposition group abroad, Hadi al-Bahra, declared that Damascus is now “without Bashar al-Assad.” The government evacuated the Damascus airport and halted all flights, according to pro-government radio station Sham FM.
Sam HARIRI / AFP/Getty Images
In response, several foreign countries are addressing the recent developments and are reaffirming the safety of their citizens in Syria.
In a statement on Sunday the foreign ministry of Russia, a key Assad ally, said it was “closely following the dramatic events in Syria” and urged everyone “to refrain from using violence and resolve all issues through political means.”
It commented: “As a result of negotiations between B. Assad and a number of participants in the armed conflict on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, he decided to resign from the presidency and left the country, giving instructions for a peaceful transfer of power. Russia did not participate in these negotiations.”
In addition, according to the Moscow Times, Senator Konstantin Kosachev said the main priority for Moscow is “to ensure the safety” of Russian citizens in Syria.
“For us, as Russians, the primary task is to ensure the safety of our compatriots and civilians, including diplomats and their families,”Kosachev said.
Later Sunday, the Associated Press reported via Russian media that Assad has fled to Moscow.
The Russian agencies, Tass and RIA, cited an unidentified Kremlin source on Assad and his family being given asylum in Moscow, his longtime ally and protector. The Associated Press was not immediately able to verify the reports.
Meanwhile, Iran has also responded, in a statement released on Sunday the Iranian Foreign Ministry reaffirmed Iran’s policy to respect the unity, national sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, according to Tasnim, adding that only Syrians can decide the future of their country.
In addition, Esmaeil Baqaei, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, announced on Sunday that they are ensuring the safety and security of the Iranian embassy staffers in Damascus, Tasnim reported.
China’s foreign ministry said in a statement it “is closely following the development of the situation in Syria and hopes that Syria returns to stability as soon as possible,” according to Hong Kong Free Press.
“The Chinese government has actively assisted Chinese citizens who are willing to leave Syria in a safe and orderly way and has maintained contact with… Chinese citizens who remain in Syria,” the ministry said.
It comes after China’s ties to Syria have grown in recent years as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Assad announced a “strategic partnership” between their countries during Assad’s trip to China in 2023.
This is a historic day for the Middle East. The collapse of the Assad regime, the tyranny in Damascus, offers great opportunity but also is fraught with significant dangers.
We send a hand of peace to all those beyond our border in Syria: to the Druze, to the Kurds, to the… pic.twitter.com/yJZE3AZZJn
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) December 8, 2024
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrated the fall of al-Assad during a visit to the Israeli controlled Golan Heights, along the border with Syria, on Sunday.
According to an Israeli government press release, Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yisrael Katz received a briefing from Major General Ori Gordin, who heads the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) northern command, on the latest developments in Syria as Netanyahu said it was “a historic day in the history of the Middle East.”
He added: “The Assad regime is a central link in Iran’s axis of evil—this regime has fallen. This is a direct result of the blows we have inflicted on Iran and Hezbollah, the main supporters of the Assad regime. This has created a chain reaction throughout the Middle East of all those who want to be free from this oppressive and tyrannical regime.”
Newsweek has reached out to foreign ministries of Russia, Iran, China, and Israel via email for comment.
Assad’s fall came after his main backers, Russia, Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, were either distracted or weakened by other conflicts. Since February 2022, Russia has been embroiled in a brutal war against Ukraine, while Hezbollah has suffered severely over the past few months in an Israeli campaign which killed the group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah in September.
Since the Syrian Civil War erupted in 2011, Israel has periodically carried out airstrikes targeting Iranian aligned militant groups and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the country. Israeli jets have also repeatedly targeted what they claimed were arms shipments being moved through Syria to Hezbollah.
Meanwhile, following the fall of Damascus, President elect-Donald Trump mentioned several of these countries as he called for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in a post on his Truth Social website.
Trump said: “Assad is gone. He has fled his country. His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer. There was no reason for Russia to be there in the first place. They lost all interest in Syria because of Ukraine, where close to 600,000 Russian soldiers lay wounded or dead, in a war that should never have started, and could go on forever.”
“Russia and Iran are in a weakened state right now, one because of Ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of Israel and its fighting success. Likewise, Zelensky and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness. They have ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers, and many more civilians.”
The president-elect concluded: “There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin. Too many lives are being so needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed, and if it keeps going, it can turn into something much bigger, and far worse. I know Vladimir well. This is his time to act. China can help. The World is waiting!”
President Joe Biden spoke Sunday at the White House about Assad’s fall.
“After 13 years of civil war in Syria, more than half a century of brutal authoritarian rule by Bashar al-Assad and his father before him, rebel forces have forced Assad to resign his office, flee the country…At long last the Assad regime has fallen,” Biden said.
