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Russia has proposed to the U.S.-led coalition that they stage joint air strikes on Syrian rebels, including militant Islamist group Nusra Front, who are not observing a ceasefire, but the United States responded coolly on Friday. Such action would begin as of May 25 and be coordinated with the Syrian government, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told a Defence Ministry meeting broadcast on state television, adding Moscow reserved the right to stage strikes unilaterally. He said joint air strikes should also target convoys carrying weapons and ammunition crossing into Syria from Turkey. "We believe the adoption of these measures will allow a transition to a peaceful process to be achieved in the entire territory of Syria," he said. "Of course, these measures have been coordinated with the leadership of the Syrian Arab Republic." Shoigu said discussions with U.S. military experts based in Jordan and other counterparts in Geneva had begun on Thursday.
But the United States made clear on Friday it had little interest in the idea, noting Russia has floated similar proposals in the past and stressing that it expected Moscow to pressure its Syrian government ally and to avoid unilateral strikes. Washington has consistently refused to join forces with Russia in Syria ever since Moscow launched its campaign of air strikes in September last year, accusing it of acting solely to prop up Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The United States has called on Assad to step down.
Communication between the U.S. and Russian militaries on Syria has been limited to contacts aimed at avoiding an accidental clash as they carry out rival bombing campaigns and small numbers of U.S. forces operate on the ground. Western officials suggested that the proposal, which the Pentagon said had not been formally presented to the U.S. Defense Department, was an attempt by President Vladimir Putin to raise Russia's profile on the international stage. "There is no agreement to conduct joint air strikes with the Russians in Syria," said U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby. He added that the United States believed that Assad's government was responsible for most of the violations of the fitful ceasefire that began on Feb. 27. "We look to Russia to end such (government) violations, which includes strikes that have hit civilians and civilian facilities," he said. While Russia supports the Assad government, the United States and its allies support rebels trying to overthrow him in a civil war that has burned for more than five years and killed at least 250,000 people.
However, both sides oppose the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, which was not included in a ceasefire deal which has failed to prevent widespread violence. A U.S. military strike killed Nusra Front's leader, Abu Firas al-Suri, in April. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said the U.S. aim remains for Russia to persuade Assad to abide by the cessation of hostilities in Syria, saying it was not the first time Russia had made such a proposal. "You've seen Russia show an eagerness to cooperate with us militarily. This is not something that's new," Schultz said. In private, U.S. officials said the idea was a non-starter. "Don't see it happening," a U.S. official said, adding the U.S. military "will ensure safety of flight but nothing else." A Western official from a coalition country also played down the proposal. "Putin has long had a strategy regarding Syria of trying to share the geopolitical stage with the United States and its allies, and his latest proposal appears to reflect that goal," the official said.
Russia urges joint strikes on Syria rebels but U.S. reacts coolly
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu floated the notion Friday during a meeting that was broadcast on Russian state television, adding that the strikes could begin as early as May 25, and would be coordinated with the government of Syrian President Bashar al Assad. “We believe the adoption of these measures will allow a transition to a peaceful process to be achieved in the entire territory of Syria," said Shoigu. “Nothing’s formally been presented to us,” Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters Friday. “I can only tell you from where I sit, and from where we sit today that we do not collaborate or coordinate with the Russians on any operations in Syria,” Davis said. “We don’t have military-to-military relations with Russia.”
An image taken from video footage made available on the Russian Defense Ministry's official website purports to show an explosion after airstrikes carried out by Russian air force on what Moscow says was an Islamic State facility in the Syrian province of Idlib
The U.S. suspended all military ties with Moscow following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent annexation of Crimea. U.S. and Russian military officials have engaged in deconfliction talks, however, to make sure U.S. and Russian forces operating in Syria do not accidentally engage each other. “They [the Russians] are certainly aware in a broad sense of where we are on the ground and have been advised not to do anything that would put our personnel at risk,” Davis said. The U.S. and Russia are both part of the multi-nation International Syria Support Group (ISSG), which met earlier this week in Vienna.
The group has been working to enforce a cease-fire in Syria and speed up the delivery of humanitarian aid to areas hit hard by ongoing fighting. It also this week urged rebels groups to end any associations they have with Jabhat al Nusra, the al Qaida affiliate in Syria, as well as with the Islamic State terror group. Neither Jabhat al Nusra nor Islamic State are covered under the cease-fire agreement, and both have been targeted by U.S. and Russian airstrikes. Still, the Pentagon’s Capt. Jeff Davis said it made little sense for the U.S. and Russia to join forces. “Russian operations are supporting and enabling the Assad regime, and our focus is solely on degrading and defeating ISIL,” he said, using an acronym for Islamic State.
Pentagon Rejects Joint Strikes With Russia
