“But the magnet that the civil war there is serving in bringing in foreign fighters and recruiting people to this extremist cause will only go away if we’re able to get a political track and a legitimate, inclusive government inside of Syria”, he said.
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The risk of a dogfight between Russian, USA or Israeli aircraft isn’t the only danger in the skies over Syria.
In a statement, Turkey’s military said the plane ignored three warnings before Turkish warplanes shot down the aircraft Friday.
Russian jets violated Turkish air space on two occasions earlier this month and Turkey has warned it will respond if the incursions are repeated.
The US, Russian Federation and the Syrian government all operate drones in the region. There are speculations that the unmanned aerial vehicle belonged to Russian Federation, but investigations into the downed drone are still pending.
Gressel argues that many Western policy makers, have been lulled into a false sense of security by focusing primarily on the military hardware component of Russian military modernization.
Turkey’s military confirmed its jets shot down an unidentified drone in Turkish air space.
Turkey has also reported numerous incidents of harassment of its F-16 jets patrolling the Syrian border, by Syrian fighter planes or Syria-based surface-to-air missile systems locking radar on them. Rebels had hit one army tank with a U.S.-made TOW anti-tank missile.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev yesterday said that Russia is fighting for its national interests in Syria, not for President Bashar al-Assad.
Syrian forces have also sought to reinforce the coastal province of Latakia, a regime stronghold, fighting rebels in the north of the province. “So in that sense we’ve arrived at an understanding and a few channels for communication”. The conventional view is that Putin wants to destroy all other opponents of the Assad regime in Syria, leaving the West with an terrible choice between Assad and the Islamic State.
The military said the sides had discussed measures Russian Federation was taking to avoid further incidents.
Meanwhile, police in Kyrgyzstan said they had killed one of four Islamists who escaped from a prison in Bishkek, the country’s capital, on Monday.
Turkey’s NTV television, without citing its sources, said the object was a drone, and it had fallen three kilometers (1.85 miles) inside Turkish territory.
Kartapolov also accused the U.S. coalition of bombing infrastructure essential to a ground operation by the Syrian army. The front lines there and in the surrounding countryside have always been static. He added that troops now control of all hills that overlook Harasta and the nearby suburb of Douma, a stronghold of Islam Army rebel group. Friday’s offensive appeared to be aimed at an area south of Aleppo, rather than the city itself.
But Dzhinid, speaking to AFP in his Moscow home, complete with Middle Eastern style furnishings and a photo showing him shaking hands with Assad, insisted: “People (in Syria) are very happy, they are glad that Russians have finally agreed to help”.
The Local Co-ordination Committees, an activist network that follows the war, put the number at 57.
The Russian military has rejected claims of civilian casualties, saying its planes haven’t targeted populated areas.
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“We’re not going to make Syria into a proxy war between the United States and Russian Federation”, he said at an October 2 press conference.
