Any equitable solution to the conflict in Syria must include the removal of Bashar Al Assad from power. The U.S., which wants Assad out, has expressed concerns about Moscow and Tehran’s stepped-up military coordination.
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Russian Federation used Iran as a base from which to launch air strikes against Syrian militants for the first time on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, US State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Russia’s use of the Iranian base “could very well be a violation” of a UN Security Council resolution that requires its prior approval for the supply, sale or transfer of warplanes to Iran.
Russian Federation also gave advance notice to the US-led coalition battling Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, complying with the terms of a safety agreement meant to avoid an accidental clash in the skies, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the US-led coalition, US Army Colonel Christopher Garver said.
Secretary of State John Kerry phoned his Russian counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, after the first strikes Tuesday to express USA concerns and also to try again to get Russia to use its influence with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to arrange a ceasefire that would ease the siege of Aleppo.
“It’s not our practice to give advice to the leadership of the US State Department”, Major-General Igor Konashenkov said in a statement.
“The Russians did notify the coalition”, he said, adding that they “informed us they were coming through” airspace that could potentially put them in proximity to USA and coalition aircraft in Iraq or Syria.
But when asked about such a collaboration by CNN’s Clarissa Ward Wednesday, the former American ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford, said, “It’s not at all clear you can trust the Russians”.
Russian Federation has also requested the use of Iranian airspace to fire cruise missiles at rebel targets in Syria. “Tehran cooperates with Moscow on regional issues, including Syria, but no base has been given to them”.
“There is no stationing of Russian forces in the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, he added.
Yesterday, Russian Sukhoi-34 jets took off from the Hamadan base in western Iran and carried out a group aerial strike against ISIS targets in Deir Ezzor province, the Defence Ministry said, calling the operation a success. After a delay, Russian Federation had supplied Iran with its S-300 missile air defence system, evidence of a growing partnership that has helped turn the tide in Syria’s civil war and is testing United States influence in the Middle East.
Syrian rebels and opposition activists reacted angrily to the news.
Iran has also remained a close ally of Syria and supports its legitimate government in the face of militancy.
Just this month, Russian president Vladimir Putin welcomed his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in St Petersburg to mend ties and forge a new partnership to combat challenges in Syria.
Both countries back Assad.
“We continue to pursue that”, he said. “We need action. We have seen no effort on behalf of the United States to lift the siege or even use its influence to push the parties to protect civilians”.
The administration has spent almost $5.6 billion on humanitarian aid for Syrians since the civil war began.
Toner, however, defended the U.S. campaign. The move came with little notice to the United States, which has watched helplessly the escalating bloodshed near Aleppo, the country’s biggest city, and even offered an alliance with Russian Federation against Islamic State and other extremist fighters as a way to get Syria’s government out of the fight.
“No supplying, selling or transferring of warplanes to Iran has occurred”, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “This will further tarnish USA credibility with Syrian rebel groups and US allies in the Middle East”. Last week, Russian bombers launched a wave of airstrikes on the city of Raqqa, the Islamic State group’s de factor capital in northern Syria, killing at least 20 civilians according to Syrian opposition activists.
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The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the strikes, saying tens of civilians were killed and wounded.
