Russia's support for Syria could lead to confrontation: Kerry
US Secretary of State John Kerry has warned that Moscow’s support for the Syrian government could lead to a confrontation between American forces and Russian troops in the Arab country.
"These actions could provoke a further escalation of the conflict and lead to the loss of more innocent lives, increasing the flow of refugees and risking a confrontation with the anti-ISIL coalition operating in Syria," Kerry said on Wednesday, referring to the US-led group said to be fighting against Daesh (ISIL) terrorists in Syria and Iraq.
Kerry told the Italian newspaper La Stampa that he had told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Washington was very concerned by Moscow’s military support for the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
The US and some of its Arab allies have been carrying out airstrikes against ISIL inside Syria since September last year.
According to US officials, Russia moved fighter jets, artillery units, tanks and hundreds of troops to an airport in Syria’s western province of Latakia.
Washington says that Moscow is seeking to establish a military outpost in Syria to help the government in its fight against ISIL terrorists. US officials also said the deployment raises the possibility of air combat missions in Syrian airspace.
Last week, Kerry said that Russia had proposed opening a "military-to-military conversation" to ensure that Russian forces in Syria do not accidentally clash with US troops fighting ISIL terrorists. Military-to-military relations between Washington and Moscow were suspended last year over the Ukrainian crisis.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. More than 230,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced due to the violence mainly fueled by the foreign-sponsored militants.
The United States and its regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - have been supporting the militants operating inside Syria since the beginning of the crisis.
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