Moscow’s deepening involvement comes as the Syrian regime and Iran-backed ground forces supported by Russian Federation airstrikes are battling to retake the city Aleppo from rebels, including jihadists.
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In a move underscoring Moscow’s increasingly close ties with Tehran, long-range Russian Tupolev-22M3 bombers and Sukhoi-34 fighter bombers used Iran’s Hamadan air base to strike a range of targets in Syria.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Russia’s use pf the Hamedan base in western Iran “could very well be a violation” of a UN Security Council resolution, which Russian Federation denied.
The Russian warplanes then returned to Russia and no Russian forces remained stationed in Iran, said a USA official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak to reporters about the matter.
“We have good cooperation with Russian Federation and we say it loud and clear”, he added.
Resolution 2231 stipulates that the Security Council must sign off on any direct or indirect transfer “to Iran, or for the use in or benefit of Iran, of any battle tanks, armoured combat vehicles, large calibre artillery systems, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, missiles or missile systems”.
Up until now, however, Russia’s military has relied on tanks, armored vehicles and aircraft stationed in Syria, not in Iran.
Defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov suggested that Washington needed to brush up on the specifics of the resolution.
“In Aleppo we risk seeing a humanitarian catastrophe unprecedented in the over five years of bloodshed and suffering in the Syrian conflict”, Ban told the UN Security Council in his latest monthly report on aid access, seen by Reuters.
Underscoring the U.S. confusion, State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters that Washington was “still trying to assess what exactly they’re doing”. But as I said, it is a bigger story than just that. “We haven’t made an assessment”.
On Aug. 16, Russian Federation said its Tu-22M3 and Su-34 bombers are deployed in Iran and from there the aircraft are hitting the “Islamic State” (IS) terrorist group in Syria.
Alex Vatanka, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and the Jamestown Foundation, said the new flights mark an important development. “Our concerns remain very vivid”.
Iran and Russia have long backed the regime of Mr. Assad, with Iran providing advisers and foot soldiers and the Russians providing the air power.
“Outside assistance to the rebels has created more of a stalemate than the Russians wanted”, he said.
Moscow and Tehran were quick to dispute any violation, arguing that the Russian aircraft were not used within Iran.
Top Iranian officials said on Wednesday that the arrangement is legal because it only extends to permission to refuel.
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“Russians proposed this idea [a] few months ago and it was discussed with the Iranian authorities back in December 2015”, said Babak Taghvai, a Russian military expert based in Malta.
