Russians engage in standoffs with U.S. military in northeast Syria

Russia is intensifying a pressure campaign on American military forces in northeastern Syria after the U.S. withdrawal from much of that area before a Turkish cross-border offensive in the fall, American military and diplomatic officials say.

Russian military personnel have increasingly had run-ins with American troops on highways in the region, breaking agreements between the two countries to steer clear of each other. Russian helicopters are flying closer to American troops. And Wednesday, a U.S.-led convoy returned fire after it came under attack near a checkpoint manned by forces loyal to President Bashar Assad of Syria, who are backed by Russia.

American officials say these actions by Russian personnel and their Syrian allies are devised to present a constant set of challenges, probes and encroachments to slowly create new facts on the ground and make the U.S. military presence there more tenuous. About 500 American troops remain deployed in Syria with a mission to protect oil fields and help fight remnants of the Islamic State group.

“These are not daily occurrences, but they have been increasing in number.” James Jeffrey, the top American diplomat overseeing Syria issues, told reporters last week. The confrontations risk escalating to a significant hostile encounter between Washington and Moscow, even as Russian-backed Syrian government troops have stepped up an offensive against rebel enclaves in Idlib in Syria’s northwest.