A Russian Su-24 strike aircraft in the sky over the Khmeimim airbase in Syria. Photo: Dmitriy Vinogradov / RIA Novosti
The United States-led coalition is violating deconfliction protocols with Russia on safe flights over Syria, Rear Admiral Oleg Gurinov, deputy chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria said on May 5.
“Despite the fact that the Russian side stays committed to the memorandum of understanding between the Russian Defense Ministry and the US Department of Defense of October 20, 2015, the so-called international anti-terrorist coalition led by the U.S. continues to blatantly violate the deconfliction protocols and the bilateral Russian-U.S. memorandum on the safety of flights in Syria. Violations have a deliberate and systemic character,” Gurinov said.
The commander went on to reveal that coalition fighter jets have repeatedly activated their weapons targeting systems against Russian fighter jets performing scheduled flights over Syria’s eastern regions.
The U.S. maintains some 900 troops in Syria under the pretext of fighting ISIS. The troops are deployed between key gas and oil fields in the country’s northeastern regions and a garrison that blocks a strategic highway in the southeastern region.
Unlike U.S. troops, the Russian military is present in the country under an official request from the legitimate government in Damascus to combat ISIS and other terrorist groups.
Tensions between Russian and U.S. forces in Syria have been growing since Moscow launched a special military operation in Ukraine last year.
In April, the United States Air Forces Central (AFCENT) released videos showing Russian fighter jets conducting what it called “unsafe and unprofessional” intercept of coalition warplanes over Syria. AFCENT commander Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich later claimed that Russian pilots have begun buzzing U.S. fighter jets over Syria in an apparent attempt to start a dogfight.
Despite rising tensions, Russian and U.S. forces will not likely clash in Syria. The coalition’s behavior could, however, cause an unwanted incident.
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