The rapid downfall of Syrian leader Bashar Assad has touched off a new round of delicate geopolitical maneuvering between Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Russia’s diminished influence in Syria, Ukraine calls on Israel to reconsider its stance and provide essential defensive weapons and technology.

For much of the past decade, Assad’s regime, bolstered by unwavering support from Iran and Russia, brutally suppressed dissent. What began as an uprising in 2011 evolved into a devastating civil war that eventually settled into an uneasy stalemate.

Russia hasn't mass-evacuated troops and gear from Syria; it's likely waiting the situation out. Analysts say attempts to withdraw would be obvious.

The Tartous naval base is its only Mediterranean repair and resupply hub, and Hmeimim is a major staging post for military and mercenary activity in Africa.

The Kremlin confirmed on Dec. 11 that longtime Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad had fled to Moscow after rebels took the capital city of Damascus in a lightning offensive that shocked the world. Assad’s exile in Russia comes as little surprise.

After the fall of the Assad regime, Russian cargo planes flew equipment from Syria to bases Moscow controls in eastern Libya, according to U.S. and Libyan officials.

Russia is nearing an agreement with Syria’s new leadership to keep two vital military bases in the Middle East state, a key objective of the Kremlin after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad.

Jubilant rebels bloodlessly entering the capital, a president in flight, a stunned foreign patron negotiating the evacuation of its forces—this month’s collapse of Syria has more than a few parallels with that of Afghanistan three years ago.

Russia’s military withdrawal from Syria marks a strategic shift, with diplomatic efforts now focused on retaining influence.

Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted today that his country is still exploring its options for retaining a pair of bases in Syria that have uniquely strategic value following the fall of longtime ally Bashar Al Assad.