Vladimir Putin has vowed Russia’s military will
“immediately destroy” any target threatening them in Syria, representing a
strong warning to Turkey following its shooting down of a Russian warplane at
the Syrian border.
Speaking at a meeting with senior commanders in
Moscow, Putin said the military should respond with full force to any “further
provocations”, adding that additional aircraft and air defence weapons have
been sent to the Russian base near Latakia.
“I order you to act in the toughest way,” the
Russian president said. “Any targets threatening the Russian groups of forces
or our land infrastructure should be immediately destroyed.”
In continuing violence, Islamic State claimed
responsibility for a triple suicide truck bombing that killed 50 to
60 Kurds in Tell Tamer in the Hasaka area of northern Syria, while the UN said
it was sending its senior relief official, Stephen O’Brien, to Damascus to
examine the deteriorating humanitarian situation.
The downing of the Russian bomber by a Turkish
fighter jet on 24 November, the first time a Nato member shot down a Russian
plane in more than half a century, has badly strained relations between Moscow
and Ankara.
Turkey said it downed the plane after it
violated its airspace for 17 seconds despite repeated warnings. Russia has
insisted the plane remained in Syrian airspace. Putin denounced the Turkish
action as a “treacherous stab in the back”.
Putin said Russian military action in Syria was
essential to protect Russia from extremists based there, adding that
fending off that threat is the main goal of the air campaign he launched on 30
September. The campaign took advantage of western disarray and galvanised
efforts to end the four-and-a-half-year war.
Putin said Russian action supporting the
Syrian army had helped change the situation on the ground. He said Russia was
also helping providing air cover to some units of the opposition Free Syrian
Army, which were fighting “terrorists” in Syria.
Western countries say Russian air
attacks have targeted rebels fighting PresidentBashar al-Assad far more than Isis, reinforcing the
impression that Moscow’s main goal is to bolster its long-standing ally in
Damascus.
The US and Britain have meanwhile
welcomed agreement by Syrian opposition groups to hold talks with Assad in the New
Year. But the Syrians are still insisting he stands down at once – in the face
of strong resistance from Russia and Iran, the president’s closest allies.
Three days of talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,
produced a statement by 116 representatives of both political and armed
factions backing negotiations. That keeps diplomacy on track along with
military operations against Isis, in line with the UN-backed strategy laid down
in Vienna last month.
John Kerry, the US secretary of
state, welcomed the Riyadh agreement by what he called “an extremely diverse
group of Syrians” who created a negotiating body to represent them. The last
talks between the Syrian government and opposition groups were in Geneva in
January 2014 and got nowhere. Kerry admitted, however, that there were still
some “kinks” to be ironed out.
The opposition reiterated the
demand that Assad step down at the start of a transition process. It also
committed to preserving Syrian state institutions. By contrast, the US, UK and
other western countries have signalled that Assad could remain in power for an
unspecified period during the transition.
Ahrar al-Sham, one of the biggest armed
Islamist groups, which is backed by Turkey, walked out before the Riyadh
meeting ended, though it did sign the statement. It objected to the role given
to the Damascus-based group, the National Coordination Body for Democratic
Change, which is tolerated by Assad.
The talks excluded Isis and
Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian affiliate of al-Qaida and an important fighting
force, as well as representatives of Syrian Kurdish groups.
Opposition groups such as the
mainstream Syrian National Coalition are under pressure from armed rebels on
the ground, who often dismiss exiled politicians as out of touch or too
influenced by their western or Arab Gulf sponsors.
Philip Hammond, the British
foreign secretary, called the Riyadh agreement an important step ahead of new
international talks on Syria in New York next week, following up on what
diplomats call the Vienna process. The Syrian negotiations are due to be held
in the first half of January.
Source: The Guardian
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