Russian involvement in Syrian crisis

[pmaitra]

Iraq Turns on US, Wants Russia Iran as Battle Partners [2/2]
Badr milita commander: ‘Iraqi People Have Started to Feel That the US Isn’t Serious About Fighting ISIS’



(Zero Hedge) | Russia Insider

Of course rather than simply take the high road and consent that regardless of who was ultimately responsible for taking back the refinery, it was a step in the right direction, Washington has decided to deride Iran’s militias for absolutely no reason at all. Back to WSJ:

U.S. officers say the Iran-backed proxy militias known as Popular Mobilization Forces, or PMF, played only a supporting role. The bulk of the fighting was by Iraqi federal police and elite counterterrorism units trained by the U.S., the American officers said.

“It’s easy to say after the fact that ‘we did this,’ ” said Maj. Michael Filanowski, an officer for the Combined Joint Task Force, which organizes operations of the U.S.-led coalition. “But if you look at the sequence of events, it was Iraqi security forces that did the assault operations.”

He called the militias a “hold force,” meaning they secured the territory after it fell to the Iraqi forces.​

So let’s just be clear. Either, i) the US is so petty that the Pentagon is willing to argue over who played a larger role in retaking Iraq’s largest oil refinery from ISIS, or ii) Washington is actually angry that ISIS was defeated and is thus lashing out at Tehran.

Whatever the case, it’s too late. The game is up for the US in Iraq:

On Monday, Ali Adeeb, head of the State of Law bloc that controls the ruling coalition in parliament, called on Iraq’s government to prevent the U.S. from launching further ground operations like the prison raid.

Meanwhile, pro-Iranian Iraqi politicians are pointing to a grinding U.S.-led effort to retake Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province about 65 miles west of the capital, as evidence the U.S. isn’t doing enough to defeat Islamic State.

For some Shiite politicians, Ramadi and Beiji epitomize the diverging fortunes of U.S. and Iran in Iraq.

“The two operations in those two cities represent the competition between the U.S.-led coalition and the newly formed alliance among Russia, Iran and Iraq,” said Hakim al-Zamili, a prominent Shiite politician and head of the security and defense committee in parliament.

The battlefield succic State, said Patrick Martin, an Iraq analyst at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War

[Reports”] in Beiji will also make it harder for the prime minister to refuse entreaties for more support from Russia in the fight against Islam

“Russia and Iran have very similar objectives in that they both want to eject U.S. influence from Iraq,” said Mr. Martin. “Any success that the militias have bolsters that goal.”​

There are two critical takeaways here. First (and we’ve said this repeatedly) these are the very same Shiite militias battling US-backed Sunni fighters in Syria. Second, this is but another example of Washington siding with Sunni extremists over Tehran. This is a replay of what happened in the wake of 9/11 when Iran sought to help the US target the Taliban and al-Qaeda only to see The White House place Tehran in its “Axis Of Evil.” Here again, we have Sunni militants terrorizing both Syria and Iraq and instead of working with the Iranians to oust those extremists, Washington is busy downplaying their successes and supporting the proxy armies of Saudi Arabia and Qatar even as those proxy armies behead Westerners and burn Jordanian pilots alive.

This is a travesty and an absolute farce.

The US is on the wrong side of history here and it’s too late to correct it.

 

[pmaitra]

US Sends Troops to Syria: Here Are the Questions the Media Should Be Asking
$64 Million Dollar Question: With no international coordinated strategy to battle ISIS; will the Pentagon plan get US Forces in the crosshairs of the Russians, the Turkish air force, Hezbollah and Iranians as well as the agreed enemy, ‘ISIS’?

(Zero Hedge) | Russia Insider


‘Advising’ or Fighting

Originally appeared at Zero Hedge

On Friday, The White House announced that the US is set to put boots on the ground in Syria.

Predictably, virtually no one in the mainstream media is asking the right questions.

A painful Q&A with Josh Earnest saw the White House Press Secretary attempting to explain to reporters that there’s a distinction between “advise and assist” and “combat.” In short, everyone was keen on documenting the stark contrast between placing spec ops troops in harm’s way and Obama’s 2013 pledge to “not put boots on the ground” inside Syria.

While documenting the purported “shift” in strategy may make for good weekend reading for America’s clueless masses, it completely misses the point. As recently released helmet cam footage clearly demonstrates (assuming it actually depicts what Washington says it depicts) 30 Delta Force commandos were involved in a single operation in Iraq. That is, nearly as many troops as Obama is now set to send to Syria fought just last week in one battle against ISIS. And while that’s Iraq and we’re now talking about Syria, the distinction is to a large extent meaningless - there are American boots on the ground in the region and there have been in one capacity or another for at least 12 years.

The real questions revolve around where these troops are going to be placed, what their objectives are, and ultimately, how the Pentagon plans to do this without putting them in the crosshairs of either the Russians, the Turkish air force, or Hezbollah. Here’s a bit of color from WSJ on what the “plan” is:

Up to 50 U.S. special-operations troops will assist Syrian rebel units spearheading what the Pentagon says would be a new military offensive against the militant group,marking a sharp escalation in the level of direct U.S. involvement on the ground inside Syria. The American forces are to link up with local forces in Kurdish-controlled territory whose mission will be to choke off supply lines to Islamic State militants in their Syrian stronghold of Raqqa.

The first phase of the new campaign is expected to kick off with an operation in northern Syria as early as next week, officials said. U.S. drones and fighter planes will provide the Syrian fighters with air support.

Under Mr. Obama’s new orders, the American commandos will operate in Syria under what the Pentagon calls an advise-and-assist mission, and will not accompany local forces on any of their operations “for the foreseeable future,” a senior U.S. defense official said.

But other defense officials said they couldn’t rule out the possibility that the forces would be pulled into occasional firefights with Islamic State military given their proximity to the confrontation line. The officials cited as an example last week’s raid in Iraq in which a U.S. commando was killed.

To support local forces with their ground campaign, Mr. Obama has authorized the deployment of A-10 Warthog ground-attack planes as well as F-15 fighters to the Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey, administration officials said.​

And here’s more, via Reuters:

A U.S.-backed Syrian rebel alliance on Saturday announced a fresh offensive against Islamic State in the northeast province of Hasaka, a day after the United States said it would send special forces to advise insurgents fighting the jihadists.

It was the first declared operation by the Democratic Forces of Syria, which joins together a U.S.-backed Kurdish militia and several Syrian Arab rebel groups, since it announced its formation earlier this month.

“We announce today the start of the first step in our military operations,” a spokesman for the alliance’s general command said in Arabic in a video statement posted on Youtube.

The video showed several dozen men in fatigues standing outdoors with yellow flags and banners carrying the name of the Democratic Forces of Syria in Arabic and Kurdish.

The Kurdish YPG has been working closely with the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition since early this year, and has to date proved Washington’s most effective partner on the ground against IS in Syria.

The United States, which announced on Friday it was to station its first ground troops in Syria for the war on IS, has dropped ammunition to rebels in the north of Syria but without specifying which group the aid was intended for.

“With the participation of all the factions… and with support and coordination with the planes of the international coalition to fight Daesh, we announce the start of the liberation of the southern countryside of Hasaka,” the spokesman said, using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State.​

Ok, so what appears to be going on here is that Washington is going to embed the US commandos with the Kurds and support them with airstikes flown from Incirlik. If you follow the conflict closely, that should strike you as completely absurd. The US is going to fight alongside the YPG and provide them with air support via a Turkish airbase.

But just last week, Turkish warplanes flying from the very same airbase bombed these very same Kurds as they were trying to fight this very same ISIS!

As we noted in “Full Metal Retard: US Launches ‘Performance-Based’ Ammo Paradrop Program For Make-Believe ‘Syrian Arabs’”, the “Democratic Forces of Syria” (which has already been renamed - twice) doesn’t exist. Washington created a fake umbrella group whose first move was apparently to merge with the Kurds. Why the charade? Becase Erdogan has an election to win and the last thing Turkey wants is for the US to be paradropping hundreds of tons of ammo and weapons to a group (the YPG) that is aligned with the PKK. In other words, Washington needed a cover story in order to sell the ammo drop to Erdogan, so the US claimed the weapons were actually in the hands of a group of “moderate Syrian Arabs” who just happen to have merged with the Kurds two days after they announced their existence.

As a reminder, Turkey holds elections tomorrow. If the AKP doesn’t win back its absolute majority in parliament, Erdogan is going to lose his mind, which means the crackdown on the Kurds is going to intensify. How in the world Washington plans to explain to Ankara that the US plans to use a Turkish airbase to fly missions in support of American commandos that have been stationed with a group Turkey considers to be affiliated with terrorists is a complete mystery.

So that, in a nutshell, is what the press should be asking The White House to explain.

Of course the real question is what happens when Russia and Iran have finished routing anti-regime forces in Western Syria and decide to start making the push east. That’s when US troops will come in direct contact with Russian jets and Hezbollah ground troops. Obviously all bets are off at that point and one can only hope they’ll be some kind of communication between Moscow and Washington lest the battle to “liberate” Raqqa from ISIS should end up being the fight that triggers World War III.
____________________________________________
Commentary: US troops are embedded with Kurds. Turkey is against the Kurds. Turkey has an airbase at Incirlik. Turkey has used Incirlik air base to bomb Kurds. US has used Incirlik airbase to aid US troops in the region. This is a remarkably insightful example as to how NATO would function in a real war with Russia.

 

[pmaitra]

‘Isolated Putin’ Is Running Circles Around the Arrogant US Behemoth
Big and stupid versus Putin - a judo fighter

Victor Kotsev | (Who.What.Why.) | Russia Insider

Originally appeared a Who.What.Why.

Since Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea in March 2014, the West has struggled mightily to isolate the Russian leader. So far, though, the crafty former intelligence officer has employed a range of clever strategies that have put him right at the center of the action.

His decision to bomb targets in Syria to support embattled President Bashar al-Assad not only caught the West off guard but it also made the Russian strongman into a bigger player with regard to the country’s future.

The timing of his military intervention, on September 30, could hardly have been better. The refugee crisis has made Syria a top issue in Europe right now. And for the time being, any solution that will help stem the flow of refugees to the EU would have to involve Putin.

Putin’s cut-rate variant on shock-and-awe is exemplified less by military muscle and more by the triumphant sarcasm of his foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, who offered to provide air support for the moderate “patriotic opposition” on condition that the US identify those moderates on the ground.

Russia, which could not compete symmetrically with the US militarily, must rely on more subtle chessboard moves. One of the early effects of the Russian psychological operation has been to force into the open previously secret American operations in Syria, as well as the fact that much of the Syrian uprising has been taken over by extremists.

It all comes right out of the so-called Gerasimov Doctrine of non-linear war: Keep your opponents off balance and change tactics frequently, probing for weaknesses to exploit. Tactics-wise, Putin has pulled quite a few rabbits out of his hat: a no-fly zone of his own, sophisticated military hardware ranging from cruise missiles and fighter planes to powerful communications jammers, successful diplomatic initiatives — in 2013, he was instrumental in forging an agreement that resulted in the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons stockpiles — and most recently a surprise visit by Assad to Moscow.

Low Cost But Effective Tactics

Though this could change in the future, his campaign in Syria so far has been low-cost and risk-averse with respect to the lives of Russian personnel, especially as compared to the ruinous American adventures in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Iranians and the Syrians, along with their allies, are supplying the cannon fodder for the ground fighting. The majority of the bombs Putin’s air force is dropping are said to have come from the abundant old Soviet stockpiles, which one day soon would need to be disposed of anyway.

Yet he has already received major bang for his ruble: all of a sudden, Russia is again a player to be reckoned with in the Middle East; even Iraq, which spent most of the last decade as a virtual US colony, is now considering asking for Russian air strikes against ISIS. Arguably, the Kremlin stole the thunder of the US administration’s nuclear deal with Iran. (Indeed, if anyone imagined the ayatollahs would cozy up to Uncle Sam, they are now more closely than ever cooperating with Russia in Syria.) Meanwhile, US allies from Jordan to Israel to the Syrian Kurds are lining up to cooperate with Moscow.

“Russia is taking advantage of Western confusion to place itself firmly at the center of Middle East politics,” says Joshua Landis, a prominent Syria expert at the University of Oklahoma who runs the Syria Comment blog. “I think the United States doesn’t know what to do.”

In a Twist, Russia Seizes Peacemaker Role

Among Putin’s successes, surely one that deserves more attention is how Russia has made itself indispensable to ending the Syrian civil war — a development that plays into disagreements between the United States and Europe over priorities.

This is particularly striking at a time when a growing refugee wave, spearheaded by those fleeing Syria, is exposing what some consider Europe’s own xenophobia and undemocratic impulses (even threatening to destroy the border-free Schengen zone in the process).

Some quick math shows how this makes Washington’s gut response — to up the ante against Putin and Assad — unpalatable to the Europeans. Of approximately 11 million Syrians who have been driven from their homes in the past four years (about half of Syria’s pre-war population), two-thirds are still in Syria. Moreover, if the chaos continues, they would likely not be the only ones flooding neighboring countries and ultimately Europe.

Joshua Landis estimates that at least a million people would flee the Syrian capital Damascus alone, should the city fall to extremists — a scenario that seemed not only possible, but even likely prior to the Russian-Iranian intervention. Many more would follow from other areas currently held by the government. As things stand now, Landis adds, the West would shoot itself in the foot if it goes on to supply the rebels with more heavy weapons against the emboldened regime.

“One of the reasons there are so many refugees is that the firepower continues to improve, and as it improves, of course more homes get destroyed, and more lives get destroyed, [there is] more insecurity and people have to flee,” said Landis. “So, what you really need is a winner or a truce. The worst thing for refugees is more firepower and an inconclusive battle.”

That helps explain why a growing chorus of voices in Europe is calling for rapprochement with Russia. “We must make efforts towards a practical relationship with Russia,” said European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker earlier this month, quoted by the BBC. “It is not sexy but that must be the case; we can’t go on like this.”

And that would leave the US with two unpalatable choices: either sit at the negotiating table, acknowledging Putin’s gains, or risk putting daylight between Washington and its European allies, playing straight into the Kremlin’s designs to fragment the alliance. Either way, the cunning Russian president has much to gain, not only in the Middle East, but also in Ukraine — many analysts believe that his ultimate goal is to force Europe to accept a frozen conflict in Ukraine and to protect the rest of Russia’s periphery from Western-supported uprisings.

In addition, Putin is collecting various other handsome bonuses from his Syrian adventure: his domestic approval ratings, for example, have shot sky-high. War, of course, is a fickle and heartless business, and the Russian president could yet find his ratings plummeting and the tab for it all spiraling out of control. But for now, for an estimated $2.4–$4 million a day, he is providing the Russian air force with invaluable combat experience while showcasing his military hardware to potential buyers. At this rate, The Moscow Times estimated, an increase of just one percent in Russia’s weapons sales next year would pay for a month’s worth of bombing. Other risks include ISIS training its sights on Russia — a particularly nasty prospect reared in early reports that the organization claimed credit for the downing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt.

Lest we forget the potential natural-resource opportunities, Putin just got to park his navy right next to several major recent gas finds in the eastern Mediterranean, sending shivers throughout the region. His Syrian adventure may yet turn into a quagmire, but for now it’s shock-and-awe indeed.

 

[apple]

http://www.smh.com.au/world/raghad-...im-of-russian-airstrikes-20151104-gkqemu.html

Some extracts from the story;

The Russians have flatly dismissed all claims of civilian casualties or damage, saying they use various intelligence sources to plan each strike to make sure there is no collateral damage.

US Central Command, which is responsible for US forces in the Middle East, confirmed two civilian casualties from a November 5, 2014 US airstrike in the vicinity of the Syrian city of Harim, and has seven open investigations into civilian casualty allegations, said Colonel Pat Ryder


Observatory's figures also suggest the air campaign waged by a US-led coalition in the past 13 months has killed IS members at a higher rate while harming civilians less.

The Observatory said it has so far confirmed 185 civilians killed in Russian strikes the past month — including 46 women and 48 children — while the toll among IS fighters was 131. The heaviest toll came among Syrian rebels not connected to IS, with 279 dead, the group said. In contrast, the US-led air campaign has killed 3,726 IS members — an average of 252 a month, and 225 civilians — according to the Observatory's statistics.​

____________________________________________

Am not quite sure who the Russians think they are fooling. Presume their own people are used to their own media lying to them and don't take official statements too seriously.

How they imagine they wont (and claim they aren't) cause any collateral damage, I can't undertsand. Particularly when they are using 1960's technology i.e. iron bombs aimed with a targeting computer and spin stabilised rockets

Before coming here presumed the rest of the (non Arab) world had enough media savvy to not believe everything they read. While I hope DFI isn't an accurate representation of the general intelligence of indian's, there does seem to be a large number of, to quote (or not) Lenin, "useful idiots" in India who uncritically accept any anti- American/ pro- Russia they come across.

 

[bose]

@apple which media you follow that does not lie to its people ?

 

[apple]

@apple which media you follow that does not lie to its people ?

Any media source which "has people" should be treated with suspicion. The online Russian media sources I'm familiar take lying to unbelievable level of stupidity

 

[bose]

Any media source which "has people" should be treated with suspicion. The online Russian media sources I'm familiar take lying to unbelievable level of stupidity

By "People" I meant its subscribers / readers... I watch BBC as lot I have find it misreporting / lying many a times...

 

[apple]

Don't really consider private media sources to be liars, so much. They'd often "misrepresent" things to conform to the their users stereotypes.

Aren't a big fan of the BBC, so slag them off all you want, I'm on your side.

Wasn't trying to really make a point the media, more how the bald faced lying of the Russian government

 

[gadeshi]

A piece of humor for this topic:

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Looks like Iraq is not happy with being liberated and almost democratic? After two wars and the destruction of the nation on a weapons of mass destruction premise maybe Putin /Iran can offer them something more like stability,self government , food and shelter and medicine that democracy could not provide.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Akim]

Tandem BGM-71E TOW-2A

........................................................................

 

[gadeshi]

An RT video from SAA positions:

 

[Akim]

An RT video from SAA positions:

FSA captured a city Morek.

 

[pmaitra]

With Russian Air Support Syrian Army Lifts Aleppo Siege
Resupply route along a key highway reestablished

(Sputnik - Russian news agency) | Russia insider

November 5 (Sputnik) - Damascus-led forces assisted by Russian military aircraft have secured control over the main highway to Aleppo essentially freeing the strategic Syrian city which had been besieged for two weeks, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported.

A team has already finished disarming explosive devices along the road. On Wednesday, authorities opened the highway to traffic letting military equipment, as well as trucks carrying food and fuel through. Soldiers at checkpoints said that the road would be open to civilians on Thursday.

Aleppo is the economic capital of Syria and the largest city in the country. In 2011, Aleppo had 2.4 million residents, while 1.9 million people lived in Damascus. Since the outbreak of the civil war Aleppo became the scene of intense fighting forcing many to flee the city and seek shelter in Damascus.

Almost all highways linking Aleppo to Damascus, Latakia, Hama, etc. are controlled by rebel groups. Some two weeks ago ISIL fighters seized the so-called “road of life” to Aleppo. It was the only way to get to Latakia in the West or Hama, Homs and Damascus in the South.

Approximately 1 million people lived in Aleppo when this road was cut off from those areas of the country which have not been overtaken by rebels. They were left without fuel, gas and food and prices skyrocketed. Basic supplies currently cost up to ten times more than in the rest of Damascus-controlled Syria.

Russian Air Force jets conduct a pinpoint strike with a BETAB-500 bunker-busting bomb on engineering facilities of the Islamic State in Aleppo Governorate.

There is no electricity. Locals use diesel generators to charge phones and light their homes but fuel oil is also a rare commodity.

“We had to eat food [that we stored before the siege] – buckwheat, pasta, rice. There is a store located two kilometers away. They sell everything at inflated prices and it is too dangerous to go there because of shelling,” Olga, a Russian national living in Aleppo, told RIA Novosti. She has no water or electricity and has to cook on fire.

Damascus-led forces were fighting to free the highway, especially the Ithriya-Khanaser road, for days. Forcing ISIL fighters was complicated by the fact that they received supplies from the Syrian city of Raqqa, the capital of the self-proclaimed caliphate.

On November 1, militants launched an attack on the city of al-Safira but the army assisted by the Russian aerial forces warded off the assault. The next day the army freed the Sheikh Ahmad village, located to the east of al-Safira. Russian airstrikes in the area helped turn the situation around.

Interesting fact: coordinates for some of the targets were provided by the Syrian opposition, which is fighting against ISIL and al-Nusra Front, Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Andrei Kartapolov said. According to Kartapolov, although these “patriotic forces” have been engaged in a months-long fight against government forces, they view unified, sovereign and free Syria as a priority.

As ISIL withdrew from the area, militants placed explosive devices along the Ithriya-Khanaser road. Demining efforts lasted for several days.

Meanwhile, locals say that Damascus-led forces have also taken the eastern part of Aleppo, including Midan, Sulaymaniyah, Azizia and other neighborhoods, under control. The Free Syrian Army is also present in the city. The FSA is currently holding talks with Damascus and Moscow. A ceasefire and joint efforts to tackle Islamic radicals are the main issues on the agenda.

The western part of the city is controlled by an array of militant groups including ISIL, al-Nusra Front, as well as other less known organizations with big names like the Syrian Lions or the Warriors of Islam. They control many villages to the west of Allepo but the siege of the strategic city has been lifted.
______________________________________________
Commentary: Fight, talk, fight, talk, fight, talk, . . . , the same old Russian tactic that was used extensively during the days of Russian expansion.

 

[Yun Ming]

SAA captures Ghamam


.....................................

 

[pmaitra]

John McCain will be disappointed.

SYRIA: McCain Guarantees Russia, China and Iran Will Not Act

Neocon John McCain Ripped on Syria at Town Hall

Guy Calls for John McCain to be Arrested and Tried for Treason

 

[Akim]

After a the month brought the first results. Despite air support, SAA has only local successes over the FSA and ISIS. Need a contingent of ground forces (such as from Iran and Russia). Russian mercenaries are already there, but their combat effectiveness is low. Need regular troops.

 

[pmaitra]

After a the month brought the first results. Despite air support, SAA has only local successes over the FSA and ISIS. Need a contingent of ground forces (such as from Iran and Russia). Russian mercenaries are already there, but their combat effectiveness is low. Need regular troops.

Russia will not be sending its ground troops. What it should do is arm the Kurds to the teeth with air defence and anti-armour equipment. Thereafter, the Kurds can go into Turkey and bring down Sultan/Khan/Khagan Erdogan. If he tries to use his air force, they will start popping off the sky. If he tries to use his armour, they will get fried. Bacisally, Turkey needs to collapse. Much of the territory that was formerly Armenian, earlier on settled with Circassians, should be restored to Armenia. The rest should go to the Kurds. That will be the beginning of the end of NATO.

 

[Akim]

Russia will not be sending its ground troops. What it should do is arm the Kurds to the teeth with air defence and anti-armour equipment. Thereafter, the Kurds can go into Turkey and bring down Sultan/Khan/Khagan Erdogan. If he tries to use his air force, they will start popping off the sky. If he tries to use his armour, they will get fried. Bacisally, Turkey needs to collapse. Much of the territory that was formerly Armenian, earlier on settled with Circassians, should be restored to Armenia. The rest should go to the Kurds. That will be the beginning of the end of NATO.

I too like to read fantastic works.

 

[pmaitra]

I too like to read fantastic works.

Just like the Antonov models you have been posting? :biggrin2: