Russians troops will bolster Assad
Military advisers dispatched in order to set up airbase, Israeli defence minister says
JERUSALEM— Russian troops have arrived in Syria to aid Bashar Assad’s beleaguered government in the battle against Islamic State militants, Israel’s defence minister said Thursday, a development that could help the Syrian president reverse his recent battlefield losses in the country’s bitter civil war, now in its fifth year.
Moshe Yaalon said the Russians in recent days dispatched military advisers as well as an active force, with the main goal of setting up an airbase. The base, near the Syrian city of Latakia, could deploy fighter jets and helicopters in strikes against ISIS militants.
“As far as we understand, at this stage, we are talking about a limited force that includes advisers, a security team and preparations for operating planes and combat helicopters,” Yaalon said in a briefing with Israeli reporters.
The claim was the latest indication of a Russian military buildup in Syria that has raised U.S. and NATO concerns.
Earlier Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russian aircraft flying into Syria have been delivering weapons along with humanitarian supplies. He added that Russian servicemen are in the country to train the Syrians how to use the military hardware, but would not provide numbers or any other specifics. Moscow has backed Assad throughout Syria’s civil war, which has killed more than 250,000 people. Lavrov, just like Russian President Vladimir Putin, sought to cast arms supplies to Assad’s government as part of international efforts to combat the Islamic State group and other militant organizations in Syria.
Putin has not ruled out a larger role. When asked whether Russia could deploy its troops to Syria to help fight ISIS, he said last week that Russia was “looking at various options.” The ongoing Russian buildup could signal he already has decided to back up Assad.
The United States and its allies see Assad as the cause of the Syrian crisis and Washington has warned Moscow against beefing up its presence in the country.
But those warnings have been softer in tone, compared with the original U.S. position that demanded Assad’s ouster.
After years of heavy fighting, it seems that Assad can continue clinging to power, propped up by Russian and Iranian aid, as well as the West’s focus on the struggle against the extremist ISIS group, which now controls a third of Syria.
Yaalon described the Russian move as “significant,” and said if the Russians plan on carrying out airstrikes against ISIS militants, they would have to co-ordinate it with a U.S.-led campaign.
The Israeli minister added that Russia’s first goal is probably to protect its interests in Syria, namely the navy base of Tartus on the Mediterranean Sea. Yaalon did not elaborate on how Israel knew of the Russian deployment in Syria.
Israel has been careful to stay out of the fighting in Syria and has not made its preferences clear. So far, Russia’s manoeuvres do not appear to be co-ordinated with other countries operating in the area.