A military official at al-Khadim air base in eastern Libya said that a half-dozen Russian planes — some coming from Russia and some from Syria — had arrived carrying military equipment since Dec. 8, when Syrian rebels overthrew Russia’s ally, Bashar al-Assad.

Samuel Ramani, an associate fellow at the RUSI think tank and the author of the book Russia in Africa, described the collapse of Assad’s regime as a “geopolitical and status defeat for Russia” that not only creates logistical problems but undermines its reputation with pro-Kremlin dictators in Africa.

Russia is transferring advanced air defense systems and military equipment from its military base in Syria to Libya.

The transfer marks the end of an era when Russia played an arguably oversized role in determining which countries could operate in Syria’s contested airspace.

Since the start of the invasion of Ukraine, Russia has exported gold worth $2.5 billion from Africa. According to a report by the World Gold Council, the money obtained in this way supports the Kremlin's war machine.

Leaders in Rome fear Moscow's warships could be parked "two steps" from Italian shores, as Defense Minister Guido Crosetto put it.

Libya’s prime minister said it would be unacceptable for Russia to move weapons from Syria to the divided OPEC member, where rival powers in the east have previously drawn on Kremlin support.

Russia is reportedly moving military equipment from Syria’s Tartus naval base and Khmeimim air base to eastern Libya after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Russia appears to be moving some of its military equipment from Syria to Africa, where Moscow is expanding its military footprint.

The Kremlin has started pulling back its presence in Syria by moving its military equipment out of the country and transferring some of it to Libya. Photo: Maxar Technologies Russia is withdrawing advanced air-defense systems and other sophisticated arms ...

Experts believe that Russia is moving defence materials from Belarus to Libya in a bid to increase its military presence.

Russia appears to be scrambling to reinforce its bases in Libya as it faces being thrown out of Syria, its other foothold in the Mediterranean. Flight data show at least three Russian military ...