Russia continues to send Syria support

Russia continues to send units to Syria; the United States feels the pressure.

data-mce-style="margin: 0; padding: 0; font-family: arial; font-size: 10pt; word-wrap: break-word;" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px; font-family: arial; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; word-wrap: break-word;">LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (Catholic Online) - Washington has not had military-to-military cooperation with Moscow since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, however the increased presence of Russian aircraft have begun to force Washington's arm.

U.S. aircraft have been launching airstrikes against ISIS since the middle of 2014, while Russia uses drones and fighter planes as surveillance of non-ISIS rebels.

Last Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned America that "unintended incidents" might occur if Washington didn't revive military-to-military cooperation with Moscow.

Tuesday, Putin indirectly added pressure to the United States at a security summit by saying, "We support the government of Syria in its effort to counter terrorist aggression. We provide and will continue to provide military assistance ... We call on other countries to join us."

The Wall Street Journal reported U.S. officials said Russia has deployed six tanks at an airfield outside Syrian port city Latakia, which Washington predicts will lead to direct combat.

Russia has been protecting Syrian President Bashar Assad in accordance to a three-year-old policy declaring Russia and Syria allies at the beginning of the Syrian conflict. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama's administration would see Assad step down from his position as president.

Despite the obvious disagreements between the two governments, Putin said, "Fighters from around the world receive ideological and military training in the ranks of ISIL [Islamic State of Iraq and Levant], unfortunately including those from European countries, the Russian Federation and many countries of the former Soviet Union ... And of course we're worried about their possible return to our territories."

The comment was a hint toward the United States and Russia finding common ground, especially since Putin is expected to appear at the United Nations General Assembly later this month. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov claims Russia is open to communicate with the United States concerning the Syria crisis but the Kremlin have yet to hear what Obama's status is.

Russian state news agency Interfax reported Peskov saying, "It's not possible to discuss the format without any sort of agreement or signals" from Washington.

Military analyst Alexander Golts said the Kremlin was promoting an international coalition against the Islamic State as a means of ending Russia's international isolation.

Golts said, "The idea of this is ... to show Russia as part of the alliance of civilized nations that are standing against barbarism ... But that idea won't have much of a chance, because the U.S. and the Saudis and others consider Assad the source of the problem."

Executive director of the Centre for the National Interest in Washington Paul Saunders believes the Kremlin's support for Assad is about "saving face" and "exercising Russian influence in Syria."

He told The National, "Moscow would not have much leverage over Assad if the Russian government attempted to persuade him to step down ... The regime is in a very delicate state. If he were to leave, it might collapse entirely, therefore their (Russia and Iran) entire position would be wiped out."

Saunders believes any attempt to remove Assad by either Russia or Iran would not only fail but would also destroy what is left of the Syrian government.

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