Iran Official: No Permanent Base for Russian Strikes Against Syria

The speaker of Iran’s parliament stressed on Wednesday that Russia does not have a permanent military base within the Islamic Republic, a day after Moscow announced launching airstrikes on Syria from Iran.

The fact that Iran allowed Russian warplanes to take off from its territory to bomb targets in Syria was an unprecedented move, underscoring the deepening cooperation between two powerhouses heavily invested in the Syrian civil war.

The comments by the Iranian official, Ali Larijani, seem geared at easing domestic concerns over the strikes. Iran’s constitution, ratified after its 1979 Islamic Revolution, bars foreign militaries from having bases within the country.

In his remarks, reported by the state-run IRNA news agency, Larijani did not directly discuss the strikes, though he said Iran has “cooperated with Russia, as it is our ally on regional issues, especially on Syrian issues.”

“We have good cooperation with Russia and we say it loud and clear,” Larijani said.

Russia’s Defense Ministry announced Tuesday that it launched the strikes from near the Iranian city of Hamedan and struck targets in three provinces in northern and eastern Syria.

It is virtually unheard of in recent history for Iran to allow a foreign power to use one of its bases to stage attacks. Similarly, Russia has never used the territory of another country in the Middle East for its operations inside Syria, where it has been carrying out an aerial campaign in support of President Bashar Assad’s government for nearly a year. Iran is also a major supporter of Assad.

Col. Christopher Garver, a U.S. military Spokesman in Baghdad, told reporters at the Pentagon that the Russians activated a communications link with coalition officials just ahead of the bomber mission.

“The Russians did notify the coalition,” he said, adding that they “informed us they were coming through” airspace that could potentially put them in proximity of U.S. and coalition aircraft in Iraq or Syria.

Asked how much advance notice the Russians gave the U.S., Garver said, “we did know in time. It’s not a lot of time, but it’s enough” to maintain safety in the airspace over Iraq and Syria, he said.

The seemingly last-minute nature of the mission raises questions about whether the move was a strategic necessity or a political message from the Kremlin to Washington.

The announcement from Russia marks the first significant stationing of its troops in Iran since World War II.