This story briefly summarizes the history between Russia and Assad’s Syria, who Russia helped maintain control over the country during Syria’s many internal conflicts. As a demonstration of unity and thankfulness for Russia’s continued support of Assad’s regime, Syria has publicly stated that it supports Russia on the issue of Ukraine and it is willing to house Russian soldiers to aid Russia’s weaker (relative to what the US had before the withdrawal of Afghanistan) influence in the Middle, considering Russia’s only naval base in the region is the Tartus Naval Facility, coincidentally located in Syria. The story fails to mention any of Russia’s opinions on the topic, however, the article mentions that Syria and Russia are planning to sign an economic cooperation deal in the near future.
Russia and Syria have had good relations since the Soviet Union began to raise a Syrian Army for the country. So it is only a natural continuation of the reciprocation that both countries have demonstrated for Syria to almost comfort Russia during one of the countries toughest times. However, I believe that Russia is spread thin concerning their military, given their conflict in Ukraine, and thus this proposal by Syria is almost an empty suggestion. At least Russia’s land forces are spread thin, and that leaves their Navy for Syria. However, as previously covered, Syria already houses a large naval base for Russia. This transitions into a more interesting topic, that of the current power dynamic within the Middle East. Given that the US has recently pulled plugs previously in the Middle East, the shatter belt region has fallen into the contention of US vs. China, and I believe that Russia also wants a hand in the Middle East. If Russia weren’t tied up in its conflict with Ukraine, Syria’s proposal would probably introduce Russia’s hand into the game of Middle East control, further dividing the region between its already shattered power dynamic. Unlike the US and China in the Middle East, Russia wouldn’t necessarily have resources in mind as Russia has plenty of oil itself, however, I believe that Russia would simply like to have control of the area itself. Considering the name is the Middle East, it is in the middle of the eastern hemisphere, it would provide them direct land borders and sea borders with many of the nations that are against Russia.
To relate back to class, the region in question is a shatterbelt region and Syria is opening the possibility for Russia to become a regional hegemon in the Middle East. However, Russia is currently occupied with trying to recapture how it was during the SU, and decided to begin with invading Ukraine. This also reflects MacKinder’s Heartland theory as Ukraine further expands into the heartland.