Syrian authorities have presented an official demand to Putin

Temporary President of Syria Ahmed al-Sharaa, who heads "Hayat Tahrir al-Sham," sent an official appeal to the Kremlin demanding the extradition of former country president Bashar al-Assad. According to sources from Al Arabiya and Al Hadath, Assad fled to Moscow in December last year after rebels established control over Damascus.

Earlier it was reported that the new Syrian authorities demanded the return of assets that the former Syrian leader had placed abroad. However, during a recent visit of the Russian delegation to Damascus, Russian representatives stated that Assad's family allegedly has no investments in Russian assets.

During the negotiations, the Syrian leadership again raised the issue of transferring Assad for trial. The Russian side, in turn, expressed the opinion that this issue should not hinder the normalization of relations between Moscow and Damascus.

It is known that Russia seeks to maintain a military presence in Syria. The country's new Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Kasra stated in February that the future of Russian military bases would depend on the interests of the Syrian state.