Putin hailed the military’s performance, but added that “there is still a lot of work to do…to rid Syria of militants and terrorists and protect Russian Federation from possible terror attacks”. Meanwhile Department of Defense spokesman Peter Cook said “We are not coordinating or cooperating with the Russians in terms of targets but we are taking these important steps to make sure our pilots, and the Russian crews for that matter, do not come into conflict with one another”.
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Moscow’s military campaign in Syria to date has not achieved enough and a next phase is needed, Russian news agencies quoted President Vladimir Putin as saying on Friday.
From a base in southern Russia, warplanes including 25 Backfire, Bear and Blackjack bombers dropped air-launched cruise missiles against more than a dozen Islamic State targets over night in what represents a major escalation of Russian military involvement in Syria. He said this deprived IS of $1.5 million in daily income from oil sales.
In addition, Russia’s air campaign has provided significant support for Syrian government troops near Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia and Palmyra, he noted, RT reported.
French President Francois Hollande is set to travel to Washington and Moscow next week for talks on joint military action against IS, and Putin already has ordered the military to cooperate with the French.
When the French nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle reaches its position near Syria’s coast, it will find what until recently might have seemed an unlikely ally: a Russian guided missile cruiser.
The video purports to show “combat sorties of the long-range aviation of the Russian Air Force against terrorists in Syria”, according to its the caption.
“There has been no discussion about a ground operation and there is still no discussion”, Peskov told reporters.
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On Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry released footage of airstrikes on an alleged Islamic State-operated oil refinery in Syria.
