Since last December, the regime of Syria – and in particular its head, Ahmad al-Sara – have opened negotiations with Turkey seeking immediate aid in the defense sector.

The fall of the Assad government – coupled with both the withdrawal of Russian forces from the region and massive attacks by Israel on all of the country’s bases and air defense systems – have left a significant security gap. Turkey had initially officially deferred the specific issue of its military presence to a second year, but the recent inauguration of a transitional government in Syria seems to bring developments.

The T4 base and Israel reacting

According to sources in Turkey, but also in Damascus, Turkey is expected to immediately deploy its own anti-aircraft systems to the base, codenamed T4, which is located in the central province of Homs.

This particular base – Tiyas – near Palmira is the most important air base in Syria and Turkey is expected to deploy Hisar systems to the site in order to initially provide adequate anti-aircraft protection at the site and in a second year will deploy more systems and forces to cover Damascus itself.

The same sources say that Turkey is already ready to supply hundreds of drones to the base and to deploy specialized military personnel in the area.

The T4 base has in the recent past been the target of Israeli strikes as Assad regime air defense systems were installed at the site and, according to Tel Aviv, there has been a lot of activity on the part of the forces controlled by al-Saraa, which seem to be attempting to transfer certain weapons systems left behind in two bases (one naval and one air force) by the Russians leaving the country.

Tel Aviv has made it clear that it will not allow Syria to become a military and political satellite of Iran and Turkey and that it will respond with military force to any move to provoke or create a fait accompli. Officially there has been no announcement from either side, but it should not be considered unlikely that Israel will continue to strike targets peripheral to the base. In the hours since Assad’s fall, Israeli fighters appear to have hit the base itself, dismantling its infrastructure.