Contents tagged with Syria

  • Putin: Russia intends to continue joint operations with Turkey in Syria

    Russia will continue to conduct joint operations with Turkey in Syria, including joint patrols. Russia sees that Ankara is fulfilling its obligations, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated following the Russian-Austrian talks.

    Putin recalled that during negotiations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who came to Sochi on a short working visit, they “got an idea to create a demilitarized zone up to 15-20 kilometers long" in order to ensure the security of Syrian civilian …

  • Putin considers large-scale military actions in Syria unnecessary

    There is every reason to believe that there will be no need for large-scale military actions in Syria, said Russian President Vladimir Putin at his meeting with the Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.

    According to Putin, the Turkish side takes their obligations of the de-escalation zone operations in Idlib seriously. Ankara contributes to the withdrawal of both militants and heavy weapons.

    “We work in solidarity with the Turkish partners. We see that they are also serious about fulfilling …

  • Syria to involve Russia in construction of railway to Iraq

    Russian companies will take part in the restoration of the railway network in Syria, as well as the construction of a new branch that will stretch across the entire country, stated the chief of the Damascus branch of the Syrian Railways (SZD), Radvan Tikriti, reported RIA Novosti. 

    “The SZD goal is to restore connections between the provinces, as well as link them with neighboring countries, bringing routes to the border with Iraq and in the future to the border with Turkey. Plan also includes …

  • Kremlin: Russia completed delivery of S-300 missile systems to Syria

    Russia completed the delivery of the S-300 antiaircraft system to Syria despite Israel's protests and Washington's fears that the delivery of the anti-aircraft system will strengthen Iran and will lead to an escalation of the Syrian conflict.

     “The work was completed one day ago,” Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu reported to President Vladimir Putin during a meeting, a fragment of which was broadcast on the Russa-24 state-run TV channel. Shoygu added that anti-aircraft systems will serve …

  • Russia unveils its losses in Syrian war

    During three years of military operations in Syria, Russia lost 112 people, stated the former Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces and the chair of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security, Viktor Bondarev, reports Interfax.

    According to Bondarev, almost half of these losses are due to the An-26 crash and downed IL-20.

    "At the moment, the total loss of our armed forces in Syria is 112 people. In regards to the equipment, we have lost 8 aircraft, 7 helicopters, and …

  • Russian cargo planes deliver S-300 missile systems to Syria

    Over the last two days, three Russian Air Force An-124−100 Ruslan cargo planes flew to Khmeimim airbase in Syria, reports Eurasia Daily. The planes flew over the Caspian Sea and then Iran and Iraq. According to the reports, seven more IL-76 military cargo planes landed in Khmeimim airbase during this past week.

    On September 24, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu announced that Russia would begin deliveries of S-300 systems to Syria. The Russian decision to send these systems to Syria came …

  • Media: Israel provides evidence that it was not involved in Russian Il-20 crash

    “Images showing the locations of the air targets from the radar screen", which the Russian Defense Ministry used as a proof of Israel’s responsibility in the Il-20 crash, were fabricated, writes the Haaretz newspaper referring to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) sources.

    The IDF said that on September 17, four Israeli F-16 fighters fired missiles at the target in the Syrian province of Latakia from the airspace east of Cyprus at 21:42. Four minutes before that, at 21:38, the Israelis warned the …

  • Lavrov: Russia started supplying S-300 missile systems to Syria

    Moscow has already started delivering the S-300 Russian anti-aircraft missile systems to Damascus, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a press conference in New York, reports RBC news agency.

    "The S-300s have already begun to arrive in Syria," said the head of the ministry noting that, in accordance with the president's [Putin] order, deliveries began "immediately after the incident" with Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft over the Mediterranean Sea.

    Lavrov assured that Moscow will …

  • Israel promises to destroy Russian S-300 missile systems in Syria if they are used against Israeli aircraft

    Defense Minister of Israel Avigdor Lieberman said that any anti-aircraft systems that fire at Israel’s aircraft will be destroyed. “If someone starts shooting at our aircraft, we will destroy them. And we don’t care if it was S-300 or S-700,” he said.

    Meanwhile, according to Lieberman, Israel is not very worried about the presence of Russian S-300 missile systems in Syria. “The most important thing is that the defense systems supplied by Russia to Syria are not  used against us,” the minister …

  • US State Department concerned that Russia’s S-300 missile systems will threaten US troops in Syria

    US administration believes that Russia supplying Damascus with an S-300 ground-to-air missile defense system will only increase the tension in the region and pose a threat to the US military personnel in Syria. This was noted by a US State Department spokeswoman, who commented on Moscow’s decision to reinforce Syria’s anti-air defense systems. The decision was made in connection with the accidental loss of a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance plane to friendly fire in Syria last week.

    “Russia …