RTFri, 25 Oct 2019 17:39 UTC
© RIA Novosti/ Mikhail AlaeddinRussian military police vehicles in northeastern Aleppo province, Syria, October 24, 2019
Around 300 Russian military police have been deployed to Syria from Chechnya - in Russia's North Caucasus - to facilitate the withdrawal of Kurdish units from the Syrian border and carry out peacekeeping patrols.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced Friday the new units arrived to back up the existing military police contingent in Syria, stating that the group of highly-skilled and experienced servicemen will carry out "special tasks" in support of the deal struck between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Upon their deployment, the military police will patrol territory along the border, near the Turkish military's Operation Peace Spring, and assist the "withdrawal of units of the Kurdish self-defense units and their armaments to a distance of 30km [18.6 miles] from the Syrian-Turkish border," the ministry said.
In addition to the boost in manpower, Moscow will also send in 33 new pieces of equipment to help them fulfill their mission.
The ministry said Friday that about two dozen military vehicles - including all-terrain Tigr high-mobility multipurpose vehicles and mine-resistant Typhoon-U armored vehicles - are on their way to Russia's Khmeimim Air Base in Syria.
Under the deal
agreed by Putin and Erdogan on Tuesday after marathon talks in Sochi, the Turkish offensive that threatened to destabilize the war-torn country even further has been contained to an area up to 32km inside Syria. It was agreed that the territory not affected by the offensive would be jointly patrolled by Turkish and Russian servicemen, while Moscow volunteered to assist in the withdrawal of Kurdish forces who found themselves at the mercy of the Turkish Army after their American allies hastily withdrew from the area days before the large-scale offensive kicked off.
Moscow said that it's up to the Kurds to hold their end of the bargain, warning that if the militias fail to pull out and withdraw their weapons, Russia and Syria would not be able to shield them from Ankara's onslaught.However, every party, including the US and Kurds, seem to be pleased with how the situation has worked out. While US President Donald Trump nonchalantly took all the credit for the Syria border de-escalation, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) chief Mazloum Abdi thanked Russia for its role in diffusing the tension. Abdi pledged to "provide all kinds of help and assistance" to both Russian and Syrian forces, while expressing gratitude to Putin for "ensuring the safety of the Kurdish people."
Comment: As for the U.S.'s current plan to send 500 more troops to "secure the oil", Moscow
responded by saying the Americans are sending mixed signals (no wonder, when the military and state department second-guess and disobey every decision Trump makes):
Russia would not want a new round of complications in northeast Syria due to a US decision to send additional forces there, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
"We would not like new complications. The work that has been done at the level of the leadership of Russia and Turkey in recent days, the results of the negotiations in Sochi should not tempt anyone to reformat or change something again," he said.
The contradictory signals the US has sent regarding Syria may indicate a desire to maintain conditions that allow for continued pressure on Damascus, Sergei Ryabkov added.
"We are very definitely worried that the signals from the White House may reflect the same attitude: to preserve the conditions for continuing multi-component pressure on the legitimate authorities in Damascus," he said. "This is the moment we don't agree and we can't agree with the United States on the situation."
Despite the various agreements so far, clashes
continue between Kurdish militants, Syrian troops, and Turkish-backed jihadists:
Turkish forces and their allied militants attacked Syrian government troops in the northeastern part of the country on Thursday, and also clashed with Kurdish militias, as both Ankara and Kurds have claimed they will abide by a cease-fire following a Russian-Turkish agreement on Tuesday.
Syrian government forces confronted on Thursday an attack by Ankara-backed militants on Kowzaliyah and Tel Laban in Tel Tamar region in the northwestern countryside of Hasaka, inflicting heavy losses on the invaders.
Militants supported by Ankara attempted to expand their presence in the Ras Al-Ain area, despite the ongoing agreement that was established by the Turkish and Russian Presidents on Tuesday. At the Tal Tamar front, AMN reported, both the Syrian Army and Kurdish fighters took on the Ankara-backed militants who were attempting to advance into the district from southeast Ras Al-Ain.
Later, the state-run news agency SANA reported that Turkey-supported militants continued their aggression on Syrian territories and occupied al-Manajir village in Tel Tamar region after shelling the area with artillery and heavy weapons - a clear violation of the new Sochi agreement that was established by the Russian and Turkish governments.
Heavy clashes also take place at the towns of Al-Asadiyah and Jafah following the Kurdish militias' refusal to withdraw from the area in favor of the Turkish military, but no advances have been made by Ankara and its forces.
A military source stated that the Syrian Army has sent reinforcements to the area to prevent any attempts by the Turkish-backed militants in the future. Later, the Damascus government deployed its tank units from Hasaka city to the Tal Tamar District to confront Ankara-backed militants that continue to attack the Syrian Army's positions near the Turkish border.
The Associated Press reported that the assault by Turkish troops and its allied militants outside the town of Tal Tamar has resulted in Syrian casualties. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has also announced that three of its fighters were killed while fighting Ankara-backed militias.
Mazloum Abdi, commander of the SDF, tweeted that Turkish troops and their militants "continue to violate and launch attacks". Turkey's Defense Ministry reported that Kurdish militias attacked Turkish troops in Ras al-Ain, wounding five soldiers. Ankara announced its military responded "within the framework of self-defense", without elaborating, according to AP.
Comment: As for the U.S.'s current plan to send 500 more troops to "secure the oil", Moscow responded by saying the Americans are sending mixed signals (no wonder, when the military and state department second-guess and disobey every decision Trump makes): Despite the various agreements so far, clashes continue between Kurdish militants, Syrian troops, and Turkish-backed jihadists: