In Moscow, the Russian defense ministry said that its warships in the Caspian Sea fired four more cruise missiles at Islamic State targets in Syria overnight, hitting a command center and explosives depot.
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A day after the Russian navy fired cruise missiles at targets in Syria – and two days after Russia’s warplanes veered into Turkey’s airspace – North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the alliance “is able and ready to defend all allies, including Turkey, against any threat”.
The USA on Friday started to withdraw its Patriot missile batteries from Turkey, despite Russia’s weekend incursions into Ankara’s airspace amid a deepening crisis in Syria.
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter in Rome yesterday called Russia’s approach to Syria “tragically flawed” and took pains to say that USA forces would not cooperate with Russian forces as long as Moscow hits targets other than IS. The Russian ships have been positioned in the south Caspian Sea, meaning the likely flight path for missiles into Syria would cross over both Iran and Iraq.
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Russia’s defence ministry has flatly denied the claim.
A fraction – 3.5% – of Russia’s airstrikes in Syria so far have targeted the terror group, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.
On the ground, forces loyal to the Syrian government targeted insurgents in the Ghab Plain area in the west of the country, with heavy barrages of surface-to-surface missiles as Russian warplanes bombed from above, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and a rebel there.
“In Syria, we have seen a troubling escalation of Russian military activities”, Stoltenberg said.
Syria’s ambassador to Russian Federation, Riad Haddad, said Wednesday that around 40% of ISIS infrastructure had been destroyed since Moscow’s military operation began, Russia’s state-run Sputnik global reported.
A Russian defence spokesman says that report is not true. “The clashes also killed 11 [rebel] fighters”, he said in a statement, and the numbers were expected to rise as more casualties were confirmed.
According to the report US military and intelligence have found out “at least four missiles crashed as they flew over Iran”.
The talks, he said, also encompassed the importance of advancing a political transition away from Syrian President Bashar Assad and toward a new government. Saudi support, he stressed, would go to three rebel alliances: Jaish Al-Fatah (Army of Conquest), the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and the Southern Front.
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Kirby wouldn’t discuss reports of Russian cruise missiles landing in Iran, but said such evidence would only reinforce the need for the USA, Russia and others to “deconflict” their various military efforts in Syria.
