Diplomat denies allegations that Russian ground forces are active in Syria
A member of Russia’s Federation Council, Konstantin Kosachev, stated that no Russian ground forces are active in Syria. Kosachev told this to a Deutsche Welle reporter on Friday at the International Conference on Security Policy in Munich. The diplomat also rejected the possibility of a future Russian-led ground operation in the war-torn country.
Kosachev specifically denied allegations of the presence of Russian soldiers and artillery units in the Syrian province of Latakia.
Der Spiegel has reported that Russian ground troops are aiding the soldiers of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. In their investigation, the journalists refer to video materials published by Conflict Intelligence Team, an association of online Russian activists.
One video in particular shows a high-ranking Russian officer saying “the national defense forces have not lost their position”. Another video shows Russian MSTA-B howitzers in Syria, which the soldiers loyal of al-Assad do not possess. Commands in Russian can clearly be heard in the video.
Russian airstrikes in Syria began in September of last year. Moscow has faced international condemnation following reports of indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets in rebel-held areas.