Jihadists in Syria pose a direct threat to Russia, Putin has told a defense meeting in Moscow, adding that any targets threatening the country’s military there should be destroyed.
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The Russian military had been giving weapons, ammunition and air support to the FSA, Putin told an annual Defense Ministry meeting, and helping it with joint operations with regular Syrian forces against Islamist militants. Anybody remotely familiar with the Syrian conflict would say that sounds like a scenario straight from cloud cuckoo land – but that’s what Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed was happening on Friday morning.
“I want to warn anyone who might again try to organize a provocation against our troops”, Putin said. “Such targets”, he said, “must be immediately destroyed”.
The Russian military should coordinate its actions with Israel and the U.S.-led coalition against Daesh, he said.
Mr Putin said the mission in Syria is aimed at protecting Russian Federation from extremists based there.
His statement appeared to be the first time Moscow said it was actually supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s opponents in the fight against Islamic State forces.
In late November, Russia’s warships based in the Caspian and Mediterranean seas also launched similar missiles targeting Islamic State (ISIS) positions.
Turkey’s foreign minister said Friday his country is refraining from responding to Russian efforts to hit back at Turkey over the plane’s downing, but added that the country’s patience has limits.
In response to Turkey’s downing of a Russian Su-24 fighter-bomber on the Turkish-Syrian border, Moscow had increased its air defenses in Syria, including the deployment of S-400 systems to the Latakia airbase.
According to Putin, the actions of Russia’s Armed Forces in Syria “were synchronized with the work of law enforcement bodies and special services on Russia’s territory”.
“The situation in Russian-American relations remain hard”, the ministry said, citing “confrontational steps” taken by Washington surrounding the Ukraine crisis.
Putin also said that the use of the newest weaponry allowed them to inflict “serious damage” to Daesh in Syria, and underlined the importance of increasing cooperation with all countries interested in fighting against terrorism.
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Russia’s ambitious arms modernization program has continued at full pace this year, even though low oil prices and Western sanctions drove the economy into recession this year. Though the majority of the procurement agenda is not known publicly, Shoigu said the Russian Navy would receive seven new surface vessels and two submarines.
