MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin said that he had no communication with the CIA on the Syrian issue.
"No," he said, replying to a question by TASS on the matter.
Naryshkin also said that he had no information as to whether former Syrian President Bashar Assad had received state protection.
"I don’t know," Naryshkin said, replying to a question on the matter by a TASS correspondent. "This is not in my purview," he added, answering the question by TASS on whether Assad was appropriately protected.
A Kremlin source disclosed that Assad and his family had arrived in Moscow, where they were granted asylum by Russia on humanitarian grounds.
In late November, armed opposition units launched a large-scale offensive on positions held by Syrian government forces in the Aleppo and Idlib provinces, capturing several major cities: Aleppo, Hama, Deir ez-Zor, Deraa, and Homs. On December 8, they entered Damascus, prompting government troops to withdraw from the capital. Bashar Assad stepped down as Syrian president and left the country, issuing instructions to ensure a peaceful transition of power. On December 10, Mohammed al-Bashir, who had led the so-called Syrian Salvation Government in the Idlib Province since January 2024, announced his appointment as head of Syria’s interim government. The interim period is expected to last until March 1, 2025.