Contents tagged with Syria

  • Shoygu confirms that Russia's sole aircraft carrier will be deployed to the Syrian coast

    The Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov will join the country’s naval group operating in the eastern Mediterranean, the Defense Minister, Sergey Shoygu, announced.

    According to him, “the Russian naval group in the eastern Mediterranean includes at least six warships and three or four support vessels from all fleets. To increase the combat capabilities of the group, [we] plan to include the cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov in its ranks,” Shoygu said.

    According to Russian media, the Admiral …

  • Media: FSB officer has been captured by the so-called Islamic State

    The so-called Islamic State stated that they captured a Russian FSB officer, as reported by the Dozhd TV. The source of the information was credited to Furat Media, a media outlet controlled by the extremist group.

    The terrorists published a video message from a man who calls himself a Russian citizen, Captain Yevgeny Petrenko. He stated that he worked as a non-staff officer of the second operational staff of the FSB in Moscow.

    In the video, the hostage addressed President Vladimir Putin and …

  • The Kremlin declined to comment on bombing of UN aid convoy in Syria

    Russian or Syrian aircraft bombed aid trucks near the rebel-held town of Urm al-Kubra west of Aleppo on Monday, killing twelve people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Reuters reported.

    The United Nations had announced earlier on Monday that aid including food and health supplies for 78,000 people was to be delivered to Urm al-Kubra.

    The UN and the Red Cross confirmed that the aid convoy had been hit.

    "We are deeply shocked that humanitarian workers and missions have yet …

  • Samantha Power criticizes Russia for calling emergency Security Council meeting

    US Permanent Representative to the UN Samantha Power heavily criticized the Russian initiative to hold an emergency Security Council conference on Saturday to discuss an incident connected with the air raid on Deir ez-Zor, during which 62 Syrian soldiers were killed. The US claims that positions of the so-called Islamic State were targeted, and the deaths of the Syrian soldiers was an accident. Power has told reporters that Russia's actions are a ruse, the real purpose of which is to distract …

  • US reconnaissance planes circles over Russia's bases in Syria

    On Saturday, a US reconnaissance plane flew a short distance from Russia’s Hmeymim air base in the Syrian province of Latakia. It also approached the the logistics facilities of the Russian Navy in Syria's Tartus. The information was published by the web sites that track the movements of military aircraft. The P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine aircraft of the US Navy with registration number 168858 took off from the Sigonella air base in Sicily. Within an hour, the aircraft was flying over the …

  • Putin says he hopes the US will stick to its commitments in Syria

    Russian President Vladimir Putin said he hopes the US will stick to its commitments in Syria, Reuters reported. Putin noted that he believes the US and Russia share a common interest in securing a truce in the war torn country.

    While Moscow insists that Russian airstrikes in Syria are carried out primarily against extremist groups, including but not limited to the so-called Islamic State, Washington has accused Russia of targeting US-backed rebel groups.

    Putin told reporters in Bishkek on …

  • US/Russia-backed Syrian ceasefire to begin at sundown

    A country-wide ceasefire in Syria is scheduled to begin at sundown on Monday (approximately 12:00 EST). The United States and Russia both agreed to the parameters of the ceasefire, which call on the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to cease all combat operations against rebel groups. By doing so, Moscow and Washington hope to map out which areas are held by extremist forces such as the so-called Islamic State, and which are not.

    US Secretary of State John Kerry, while announcing the …

  • Putin: Russia knew about Turkey's operations in Syria

    Russian President Vladimir Putin said that sending Turkish troops to Syria was not a surprise for Russia. He stated this after the G20 Summit in Hangzhou.

    “As for the surprises, we’ve got the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and special services for such cases, to have fewer surprises. In principle, we understood what was happening, and where it all led. Everything is visible: movements, aspirations, even the problems happening in the very same Turkey due to the events in Syria are visible,” Putin …

  • Russia refuses to recognize UN Commission's conclusions on chemical weapons in Syria

    Russia supported its ally Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at the UN Security Council on August 30 in New York. Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN Vitaly Churkin refused to accept the facts provided in the report of the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

    After the meeting of the UN Security Council, he rejected the US and other countries demands to condemn the chemical attacks and punish al-Assad's regime for the use of chemical weapons. The …

  • NATO's involvement in the fight against ISIS will weaken airspace control over Eastern Europe

    NATO’s participation in the fight against the so-called Islamic State will lead to a loosening of NATO airspace control in eastern and central Europe, the DPA news agency reported on Saturday, August 27, citing sources in military circles.

    According to the agency, the alliance does not have enough AWACS radio detection aircraft systems to comply with US demands to continue the fight against the so-called Islamic State, without reducing activity in the other areas. Therefore, military experts …