British newspaper: Bashar al-Assad regime transferred two tons of cash to Moscow

The Financial Times reported, based on an analysis of bank records, that the regime of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad transferred about $250 million in cash to Moscow between 2018 and 2019, while his family was secretly buying assets in Russia.

The Financial Times said that the money transferred to Moscow was delivered to the Russian bank of the financial institution, and that senior Assad aides continued to transfer assets to Russia despite Western sanctions.

The newspaper revealed that the Assad regime, which was suffering from a severe shortage of foreign currency, transported about two tons of $100 and €500 banknotes to Moscow's Vnukovo Airport, to be deposited in Russian banks subject to sanctions between 2018 and 2019.

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The unusual transfers from Damascus underscore how Russia, Assad's main ally, has become one of Syria's most important destinations for cash after Western sanctions pushed it out of the global financial system, the newspaper said.

In 2019, the Financial Times reported that the extended Assad family had bought at least 20 luxury apartments in Moscow since 2013 using a complex series of companies and loan arrangements.

A few days ago, the British newspaper The Times suggested that the Assad family would move to the Moscow City area after Russia granted him asylum for humanitarian reasons.

On November 27, the Syrian armed opposition factions launched their “Deterrence of Aggression” operation, starting from Idlib and Aleppo, then Hama and Homs, arriving in Damascus, which they entered at dawn last Sunday, announcing the fall of the Assad regime.

Source: Financial Times