Jets scream overhead and soldiers drop down into gun turrets – outside Russia’s military base in Syria
I knew we were near a Russian military base when I could read the names of shops, cafes and pharmacies written in Russian, in surrounding villages.
The Russians have been permanently based here since 2017, propping up the Assad regime and overseeing the war against their many opponents. And the local communities have benefitted financially from their presence.
But for how long this will all last is apparently the focus of talks between Moscow and the new government in Syria because they may not stay.
For now, though, what we do know, is that Russian convoys are withdrawing from bases across Syria and are heading for the Mediterranean Coast.
Syria latest: US ‘in contact’ with rebel group
Main entrance to Russia’s Hmeimim military base in Syria
On a dusty road near the main Russian entrance to Hmeimim air base near Latakia, I could see a convoy of Russian military vehicles trundling their way past the Russian-named shops.
They were armoured fighting vehicles, troop carriers, armoured police trucks, and supply lorries, some marked with the letter ‘Z’ – synonymous of course with the war in Ukraine.
Russian military vehicles wait to enter Hmeimim air base
But this is a war that is over.
The Russian soldiers onboard the vehicles basically tried to ignore us, or simply drop down into the gun turrets to avoid being filmed.
Above us, a Russian helicopter gunship constantly patrolled the area in bright blue skies, occasionally passing a huge white observation blimp – a constant presence at all major military bases the world over.
Jets would occasionally scream overhead, some landing, some taking off, while transport planes, some of the largest in the world, taxied to and fro on the airstrip.
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It’s a busy base and it appears to be getting busier – the convoys have been arriving for the last few days.
The entrance to the civilian airport, which shares the runway, is now guarded by HTS fighters. They were relaxed, sitting next to pick-up trucks with high-calibre machine guns mounted on the back.
HTS soldiers guarding military airport
I asked one of the soldiers on duty, Zakaria Harir, what his orders were, and if they had any contact with the Russians inside.
“The location of this airport is very important, and that’s why we’ve received orders to be here,” he told me.
“As soldiers, we don’t have any contact with them [the Russians], but there might be coordination between them and the country’s military council.”
Nobody knows what is going to happen to the Russians, but at the very least they are reported to be withdrawing to Russia’s two main bases on the coast, one of which is the Hmeimim base.
A Syrian tank loaded on a lorry by HTS fighters
On the road to Latakia, along the same route some of the Russian convoys take, the sheer number of destroyed or abandoned Syrian army military vehicles – tanks, rocket launchers, trucks, and armoured vehicles, and troop carriers – is quite astounding. It goes on for mile after mile after mile.
Some are burnt out and riddled with bullets, and it’s clear that despite the speed of the rebel advance, there were major exchanges of fire here. As we drove, we could see low-loader lorries backing up to tanks on the main highway.
HTS soldiers were using bulldozers to push the tanks on board, and the tanks appeared to be in working order.
HTS soldiers in the town near the Hmeimim air base
A soldier told me they had simply been abandoned by retreating Syrian army tank crews or had broken down. They were taking the tanks away to workshops to be fixed – some they said just need new batteries, others just needed an oil change.
It feels like they are building a new Syrian army, taking over and using the equipment of the old one.
The regime is gone, and its main supporter’s soldiers are drawing down. Syria is changing at breakneck speed – just a week ago it was a war.
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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs – in worst day for indexes since COVID
Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.
While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.
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All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.
The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.
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Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.
Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.
The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.
And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.
US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters
Trump holds trade deal talks – reports
It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indian and Israeli representatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.
The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.
Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.
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China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.
Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.
Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.
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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump
He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’
“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”
World
Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they’re also battling with another problem
South Korea’s constitutional court has confirmed the dismissal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached in December after declaring martial law.
His decision to send troops onto the streets led to the country’s worst political crisis in decades.
The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.
The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.
Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP
Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.
The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.
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The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP
After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.
He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.
South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.
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