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Russia Protests US Troops’ Provocative Actions in Syria. PHOTO/Reuters
DAMASCUS – Russia has protested the leading coalition United States of America (USA) regarding “provocative acts” by US armed forces at Syria . The US-led coalition in Syria is tasked with eliminating the Daesh (ISIS) group.
Citing a senior Russian official, the TASS news agency on Friday (31/3/2023), reported that the incident took place in the northeastern province of Hasakah. The US itself is known to have deployed troops in Syria for nearly eight years to fight ISIS.
Hundreds of ISIS fighters are camped out in remote areas, over which neither the coalition nor the Syrian army exercise full control. Russia – which along with Turkey carries out joint patrols in northern Syria – has agreed on a special zone in which the coalition can operate.
However, Russian Rear Admiral Oleg Gurinov, head of Russia’s Center for Reconciliation for Syria, told Tass that US troops had twice been seen in areas that were outside the agreed zone.
“The provocative action of a US Armed Forces unit has been noted in Hasakah province. The Russian side lodged a protest with the coalition,” he said, without giving a timeline.
Last week, the US military carried out several airstrikes in Syria against Iran-aligned groups, which it blamed for a drone strike that killed an American contractor at a coalition base in the country’s northeast.
Russia intervened in the Syrian Civil War in 2015, tipping the balance in favor of President Bashar Assad. Moscow has since expanded its military facilities in the country with a permanent air base and also has a naval base.
(esn)
