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Russia Launches First Airstrikes in Syria, Officials Say Russia Launches First Airstrikes in Syria, Officials Say
(about 3 hours later)
MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia suddenly escalated the stakes in his contest with the West over influence in the Middle East on Wednesday, as Russian pilots carried out their first airstrikes in Syria.MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia suddenly escalated the stakes in his contest with the West over influence in the Middle East on Wednesday, as Russian pilots carried out their first airstrikes in Syria.
Russian warplanes dropped bombs near the central city of Homs, according to American officials in Washington, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to make a public statement. Moscow informed American officials in advance, they said. Russian warplanes and helicopter gunships dropped bombs north of the central city of Homs hours after Mr. Putin pushed a measure through the upper house of Parliament approving the use of Russian military forces abroad. Russian officials and analysts portrayed the move as an attempt both to fight Islamic State militants and to try to ensure the survival of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, Moscow’s main ally in the Middle East.
The attack came hours after Mr. Putin pushed a measure through the upper house of Parliament approving the use of Russian military forces abroad. “The only right way to fight international terrorism — and it is gangs of international terrorists that are fighting in Syria and in neighboring countries — is to act preventively, to fight and destroy militants and terrorists on the territories that they already occupied, not wait for them to come to our house,” Mr. Putin said at a meeting of government officials on Wednesday, in remarks broadcast on state television.
Russian officials and analysts portrayed the move as an attempt both to fight Islamic State militants and to try to ensure the survival of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, Russia’s main ally in the Middle East. But Homs is not under the control of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. Russia’s intervention will most likely prolong and complicate the war, as it could keep Mr. Assad in office and adds Russia to the already tangled patchwork of forces deployed there.
Russia’s intervention will most likely prolong and complicate the war, as it could keep Mr. Assad in office and adds Russia to the already complicated patchwork of forces deployed there. John Kirby, the State Department spokesman, told reporters at the United Nations that Russia had warned the United States before the attacks, and that it had requested that American and allied aircraft avoid Syrian airspace during the missions.
Sergei B. Ivanov, Mr. Putin’s chief of staff, appealed to the upper house, the Federation Council, for the measure to approve the use of force, describing it as an open-ended deployment of the Russian Air Force to support Mr. Assad — at his request — in his fight against the Islamic State. “The U.S.-led coalition will continue to fly missions over Iraq and Syria as planned, in support of our international mission to degrade and destroy ISIL,” Mr. Kirby said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State.
“We’re talking exclusively about operations of Russia’s Air Force, as our president has already said, the use of armed forces on the ground theater of military operations is excluded,” Mr. Ivanov said in remarks to a closed session of the council that were broadcast after the measure was approved unanimously 162 to 0. Eight lawmakers were absent. The information came from a Russian official in Baghdad, who informed staff members at the United States Embassy there that Russian military aircraft would begin conducting mission, according to American officials.
“It will be air support for the Syrian forces in their struggle with ISIS,” Mr. Ivanov said. They emphasized that the Russians did not provide specific information on the mission or take steps to “deconflict” the airstrike with American air operations in the region, as the United States had hoped. Secretary of State John Kerry raised Russia’s handling of the mission Wednesday morning with Sergey V. Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister. The United States had no immediate information about the effectiveness of the strikes.
Although approval by the Federation Council is generally considered a rubber stamp, a similar vote preceded the deployment of Russian forces in Ukraine in March 2014, including to Crimea, which Russia annexed. As a practical matter, coalition warplanes rarely fly in the area of Syria where Russian jets carried out their strikes, because Islamic State militants do not operate there. However, there have been occasional American strikes against the Khorasan Group, a group of senior Qaeda operatives who American officials say are plotting attacks against the west.
A spokesman for the Russian defense ministry, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said its pilots were engaged in precision strikes “against the military equipment, communication centers, transport vehicles, arms depots, ammunition, and fuels and lubricant materials belonging to ISIS terrorists.”
Although Russia and Syrian state television broadcasts said that the attacks had been against Islamic State targets, it was not immediately clear how they reached that conclusion or what they were targeting. The Syrian government has a tendency to label all of its opponents as being part of the Islamic State. The United States military, as well as opponents of the Syrian government on the ground, said the militants did not have a presence, or at least not an obvious presence, in the parts of the central provinces where much of the Russian firepower seemed concentrated.
The attacks, according to state-run television, occurred north of Homs and into Hama Province.
But they appear to have hit areas controlled by rival insurgent groups that oppose both Mr. Assad and the Islamic State, according to one rebel commander in Hama Province, Jamil al-Saleh. His group, the Izza Gathering, is one of the remaining fragments of the loosely-knit Free Syrian Army, relatively secular groups that have received some Western support.
In a video on YouTube, Mr. Saleh said that his forces had eavesdropped on communications between Syrian Air Force pilots and their bases, which confirmed that Russian warplanes were aloft.
Recent advances in Hama by a coalition of insurgents opposed to Mr. Assad as well as to the Islamic State have posed new threats to the coastal Alawite heartland where Mr. Assad enjoys his strongest support.
In his comments, Mr. Putin said that the only long-term solution for Syria was through political change and dialogue between the opposition and the government. “I know that President Assad understands that and is ready for this process,” Mr. Putin said. He added that Russia hoped Mr. Assad would make “compromises in the name of his country and his people.”
In Syria, the state-run news media strongly endorsed the move by Russia. Supporters of Mr. Assad seemed particularly pleased that Russia was sending military aid because they felt his endorsement at the United Nations two days ago was a bit tepid.
The vote by the upper chamber, the Federation Council, was unanimous, 162 to 0. Although such approval is generally considered a rubber stamp, a similar vote preceded the deployment of Russian forces in Ukraine in March 2014, including to Crimea, which Russia annexed.
The Federation Council withdrew that approval in late June 2014. After that, Russia described any soldiers fighting in southeastern Ukraine as “volunteers,” although Ukraine and its Western supporters continued to accuse Russia of deploying its forces across the border.The Federation Council withdrew that approval in late June 2014. After that, Russia described any soldiers fighting in southeastern Ukraine as “volunteers,” although Ukraine and its Western supporters continued to accuse Russia of deploying its forces across the border.
The Russian authorization of force on Wednesday came just two days after Mr. Putin and President Obama met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where they clashed over Syria. Mr. Putin says Mr. Assad is a bulwark against the Islamic State, while Mr. Obama says the Syrian war cannot be resolved until Mr. Assad leaves.The Russian authorization of force on Wednesday came just two days after Mr. Putin and President Obama met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where they clashed over Syria. Mr. Putin says Mr. Assad is a bulwark against the Islamic State, while Mr. Obama says the Syrian war cannot be resolved until Mr. Assad leaves.
Mr. Putin called for a grand international coalition to fight the Islamic State, saying in his speech at the United Nations that the world needed to support Mr. Assad and Kurdish forces fighting on the ground in order to defeat the Islamic State, much as the world fought Hitler during World War II. Mr. Putin called for a grand international coalition to fight the Islamic State, saying in his speech at the United Nations that the world needed to support Mr. Assad and Kurdish forces fighting on the ground in order to defeat the Islamic State, much as the world fought Hitler during World War II. But Mr. Obama emphasized that the United States wants Mr. Assad to leave office, a position seconded by crucial allies in the region, like Saudi Arabia. The two countries agreed to coordinate flights in the region, since Western warplanes have been flying missions against the Islamic State for a year.
But Mr. Obama emphasized that the United States wants Mr. Assad to leave office, a position seconded by crucial allies in the region, like Saudi Arabia.
Although the two men failed to reach an agreement on Syria, the United States and Russia are expected to try to establish some coordination for flights in the region, as Western warplanes have been flying missions against the Islamic State for a year.
Russian warplanes and helicopter gunships will be deployed in Syria, according to experts quoted in the Russian news media. Only volunteers will be called to serve, the Russian news media said, and there will be no conscription.
The Federation Council vote came on the same day the government announced intensive maneuvers involving MI-28 attack helicopters and others in southern Russia.The Federation Council vote came on the same day the government announced intensive maneuvers involving MI-28 attack helicopters and others in southern Russia.
Mr. Putin harbors both international and domestic reasons for interfering in Syria.Mr. Putin harbors both international and domestic reasons for interfering in Syria.
On the international front, he wants to restore Russian influence as a global power and to try to force an end to the diplomatic and financial isolation the West imposed after Moscow seized Crimea and supported separatists in southeastern Ukraine. He also wants to maintain control over Russia’s naval station at Tartus, in Syria, its only remaining overseas military base outside the former Soviet Union.On the international front, he wants to restore Russian influence as a global power and to try to force an end to the diplomatic and financial isolation the West imposed after Moscow seized Crimea and supported separatists in southeastern Ukraine. He also wants to maintain control over Russia’s naval station at Tartus, in Syria, its only remaining overseas military base outside the former Soviet Union.
Domestically, he wants to draw attention away from the Ukraine conflict and the troubles it has caused, as well as to burnish his image as an international man of action who solves problems.Domestically, he wants to draw attention away from the Ukraine conflict and the troubles it has caused, as well as to burnish his image as an international man of action who solves problems.
“Geopolitics and the desire to protect Russia’s influence in the Mediterranean is the main motive,” said Alexei Makarkin, the deputy director of the Center for Political Technologies. “The second motive is to limit the flow of Islamic State recruiters into Russia.”“Geopolitics and the desire to protect Russia’s influence in the Mediterranean is the main motive,” said Alexei Makarkin, the deputy director of the Center for Political Technologies. “The second motive is to limit the flow of Islamic State recruiters into Russia.”
For weeks, the United States said that Russia was deploying military equipment and soldiers to a Syrian airfield near Latakia. Russian officials said the cargo carriers flying to the site were delivering humanitarian aid.For weeks, the United States said that Russia was deploying military equipment and soldiers to a Syrian airfield near Latakia. Russian officials said the cargo carriers flying to the site were delivering humanitarian aid.
Russian surveillance drones have been sighted over parts of Syria where other rebel groups are deployed, specifically those in Idlib Province that threaten Latakia. Latakia is the heart of the coastal homeland of much of the Alawite minority elite that runs Syria, including the Assad clan. Russian surveillance drones have been sighted over parts of Syria where other rebel groups are deployed, specifically those in Idlib Province that threaten Latakia.
Russian drones have not been sighted over Islamic State-controlled areas in northwestern Syria, prompting some speculation by American analysts that Russia wants to attack all opposition groups, not just the Islamic State. Russian drone flights have concentrated on northwestern Syria, over Idlib Province, where rebels threaten the gates to Latakia. Drone activity has been absent in northeast Syria, where Islamic State militants controls major urban centers.
“We are not speaking of achieving anybody’s ambitions, as our Western partners regularly accuse us,” Mr. Ivanov said. “We are speaking exclusively about the national interests of the Russian federation.” That use of drones led some American officials to speculate that the Russians were not going to target Islamic State militants, but rather other opponents of the government. Drone experts in Moscow, however, suggested that the Russians did not have long-range drones, only drones that cannot wander too far from their Latakia base and hence keep an eye on its surroundings.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz, quoting anonymous Israeli officials, reported that Russia had also informed Israeli security officials about an hour before the aerial strikes in Syria. Last week Mr. Putin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel agreed to create a coordination mechanism to avoid confrontation between Israeli and Russian aircraft over Syria.
Russia had already said it would establish an information center in Baghdad so that Iran, Iraq and Syria could pool intelligence about the Islamic State, which controls wide stretches of territory in Iraq and Syria.Russia had already said it would establish an information center in Baghdad so that Iran, Iraq and Syria could pool intelligence about the Islamic State, which controls wide stretches of territory in Iraq and Syria.
After his meeting with Mr. Obama, Mr. Putin belittled efforts by Australia, France and the United States to fight Islamic State militants. The Russian military had counted 43 strikes in Syria in 24 hours, he said.
“What is the result? Nobody knows if there is any,” Mr. Putin said. “If we set ourselves the target of resolving specific issues and achieving specific goals, this work should be coordinated in order to be successful. The center was set up to coordinate efforts. I would like to repeat that it has been set up for all who are interested in combating terrorism to join in.”
Mr. Putin said that Russia and the United States had agreed to work out appropriate measures and that “there needs to be some informational coordination.”
On Wednesday, Mr. Ivanov took pains to argue that the Western countries flying missions against the Islamic State were acting outside international law, because they did not have United Nations approval. But the Russian actions are legal, he said, because Damascus requested them.
In Syria, state-run news media strongly endorsed the move by Russia, which it said was sending forces to Syria. Supporters of Mr. Assad seemed particularly pleased that Russia was sending military aid because they felt his endorsement at the United Nations two days ago was a bit tepid.
Deploying troops abroad remains a delicate topic in Russia, where memories of the bloody fight against antigovernment forces in Afghanistan in the 1980s remain fresh.