Syria demands Moscow hand over Bashar al-Assad, according to Reuters.

The new Syrian government has demanded the extradition of former president Bashar al-Assad during negotiations with Russia. Specifically, the demand for the former president's extradition was made by the head of the rebels, Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Source. This information is reported by Reuters citing a source.

Bashar al-Assad arrived in Moscow at the beginning of December after the Islamist group "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" entered Damascus without resistance and overthrew the government.

On Wednesday, January 29, the rebel leader al-Sharaa was declared the interim president of Syria. The new government also disbanded the army and security services and prohibited the revival of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, which was led by Bashar al-Assad.

The Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm or deny information regarding Damascus's demands.

According to the Syrian news agency SANA, the new Syrian administration also believes that Moscow must "restore trust" through "concrete measures such as compensation, reconstruction, and recovery."

"The restoration of relations must take into account the mistakes of the past, respect the will of the Syrian people, and serve their interests," stated the new Syrian government during a meeting with representatives from Russia.

During Assad's time, Russia maintained two military bases in Syria – a naval base in Tartus and an airbase in Khmeimim near Latakia. After Assad's overthrow, Moscow is striving to preserve them at all costs, as their existence allows for influence over the Middle East and Africa.

On January 28, a Russian delegation led by the Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia arrived in Syria for its first visit since the change of power. As reported by Bloomberg, the negotiations reached an impasse.

Following the meeting in Damascus, a statement was released indicating that the parties discussed "transitional justice mechanisms aimed at ensuring justice for the victims of the war unleashed by Bashar al-Assad's regime."

At the same time, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia acknowledged that the issue of preserving Russian military bases in Syria remains unresolved.

"So far, nothing is changing. This issue requires additional negotiations. We agreed to continue more in-depth consultations on each direction of our cooperation," he said.

Analysts link Damascus's reluctance to cooperate with Moscow to its increasing orientation towards the European Union. As Bloomberg reported, Brussels has agreed on a roadmap to ease sanctions against Syria, with the foreign ministers of France and Germany having visited, while the G7 countries are currently seeking alternatives to importing Russian oil to Syria. Ukraine has already sent a shipment of wheat there.

Background. Earlier, Bloomberg reported that Moscow has been unable to negotiate the preservation of Russian bases in Syria. Turkey is also opposed to the continuation of Russia's military presence in Syria.