Russia on Friday condemned strikes by the US-led coalition against Syrian forces as "unacceptable", state media reported, after the bombing of pro-government troops.
"Any military actions that lead to a deterioration in the situation in Syria obviously impact the political process," deputy foreign minister Gennady Gatilov was quoted as saying by state-run RIA Novosti in Geneva.
"Such actions that were carried out against the Syrian armed forces... this is completely unacceptable, this is a breach of Syrian sovereignty," he said.
US-led warplanes on Thursday carried out a strike in the east of the country against a convoy of pro-government forces headed towards a remote coalition garrison near the border with Jordan.
In a statement, the US-led coalition said it had struck "pro-regime forces... that posed a threat to US and partner forces."
The coalition said the strike came after unsuccessful "Russian attempts to dissuade Syrian pro-regime movement" as well as "a coalition aircraft show of force, and the firing of warning shots."
Russia and Iran have deployed forces to Syria to back up leader Bashar al-Assad while the US and many of its regional and Western allies have called for the strongman to leave power.
The United States in April infuriated the Kremlin by bombing a Syrian regime airbase in response to an alleged chemical attack by Damascus.
US-led coalition's attack on Syrian convoy on Thursday was an act of 'government terrorism', Bashar Jaafari, head of the Damascus delegation to the intra-Syria talks in Geneva, said Friday.
On May 18, the US-led coalition struck the pro-Assad fighters near the town of At Tanf in the area of an established deconfliction zone with Russia.
Jaafari told reporters in Geneva that he had raised the issue of the "act of aggression" on the US' part in talks with UN mediator Staffan de Mistura.
"We discussed the massacre that the US aggressor committed yesterday in our country. This subject was widely discussed," Jaafari said. "The important thing is that our political ambition is higher because we want to focus on fighting terrorism represented by armed groups and the state and government terrorism happening against our country. This includes the American aggression, French aggression and British aggression."
Earlier on Friday, Syrian Defense Ministry confirmed on state TV Friday that the airstrike conducted by the US-Led coalition on Thursday hit one of military points held by the Syrian Army near the southern town of At Tanf.
The airstrike was not the first time the US-led coalition intentionally or accidentally struck the Syrian army. In the early hours of April 7, the United States launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Syrian military airfield in Ash Sha'irat, located about 40 kilometers from the city of Homs. Moreover, on September 17, 2016, US-led coalition aircraft carried out four strikes against the Syrian army near the Deir ez-Zor airport, killing 62 soldiers and wounding some 100.
No comments:
Post a Comment