Multiple U.S. officials cited serious concerns Tuesday about what they consistently described as Russia’s “unusual military activity” along its border with Ukraine, as well as Moscow’s harsh rhetoric, insisting that no matter what happens next, Washington’s support for Kyiv is “rock solid.”

“We have demonstrated that the United States is willing to use a number of tools to address harmful Russian actions, and we will not hesitate from making use of those and other tools in the future,” a senior administration official told VOA on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss the sensitive subject.

“[We] call on Moscow to de-escalate tensions,” the official added. “A crucial first step is to restore the cease-fire to the low levels of violence reached in July 2020.”

At the State Department on Tuesday, spokesperson Ned Price told reporters Washington’s consultations with its European partners, and with Ukraine, are ongoing.

“We are sharing information, we are sharing intelligence,” he said, describing the talks as in-depth. “We are prepared and preparing for a number of contingencies.”

The comments from the White House and the State Department came just hours after the senior-most U.S. general, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, spoke with his Russian counterpart by phone.

The two generals “discussed several security-related issues of concern,” the Pentagon said in a statement, adding the call was “a continuation of communication between both leaders to ensure risk reduction and operational de-confliction.”

The Pentagon said, per prior agreement, additional details of the call would be kept private.

Tuesday’s call between the U.S. and Russia comes after the senior-most U.S. and Ukrainian generals spoke twice within a four-day span to “share perspectives and assessments of the evolving security environment in Eastern Europe.”

Jeff Seldin@jseldin
Just in: @thejointstaff Chair Gen Mark Milley call w/his #Ukraine counterpart Friday

Milley & Ukrainian Armed Forces LtGen Valery Zaluzhny “discussed the current security environment in Eastern Europe, including #Russia’s concerning activity in the area” per @DeptofDefense

Ukrainian intelligence estimates have put the number of Russian troops along the border at about 90,000.

U.S. officials have refused to address that figure publicly but called the Russian military buildup along its border with Ukraine worrisome.

“We don’t know what Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin might be planning,” the State Department’s Price told reporters.

“We do know the history and that history is not at all reassuring,” he added, pointing to Russia’s invasion of Crimea in 2014.

Price also rebuffed recent Russian criticism of U.S. military drills in the region, saying the U.S. and its allies would continue to stand up the “rules-based international order.”

Jeff Seldin@jseldin

Nov 23, 2021
Replying to @jseldin

.@StateDeptSpox Ned Price says US support of #Ukraine not just rhetoric

“Rhetorically is important…But also the security assistance that we have provided” he says, noting $400 million committed since start of Biden Admin.

Jeff Seldin@jseldin

Asked about #Russia|n complaints re recent US military exercises, @StateDeptSpox says, “What we do…is that we stand up for the rules-based int’l oder”

“Big countries cannot bully the small ones. That borders are not to be crossed, not to be violated…”

Russian TASS news agency quoted Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu as saying Moscow was “witnessing a considerable increase in the U.S. strategic bombers’ activity near the Russian borders.”

Shoigu also alleged U.S. strategic bombers “practiced employing nuclear weapons against Russia actually simultaneously from the western and eastern directions.”

A day earlier, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, the SVR, likewise criticized the U.S., posting on its website that the current situation with Ukraine is comparable to tensions with Georgia prior to the 2008 Russian invasion, noting Georgia paid a high price.

Jeff Seldin@jseldin

Nov 23, 2021
NEW: @thejointstaff confirms call btw Chairman Gen Mark Milley & Chief of #Russia|n General Staff Gen Valery Gerasimov

“Discussed several security-related issues of concern…a continuation of communication btw both leaders to ensure risk reduction & operational de-confliction”

Jeff Seldin@jseldin

Tuesday’s phone call btw @thejointstaff’s Gen Milley & #Russia’s Gen Gerasimov comes after Milly spoke with his #Ukraine counterpart 2x over a 4-day span…

Jeff Seldin@jseldin
JUST IN: US-#Ukraine

@thejointstaff Chair Gen Mark Milley spoke by phone w/Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Lt. Gen. Valery Zaluzhny

They “exchanged perspectives & assessments of the evolving security environment in Eastern Europe” per readout

The U.S. has provided Ukraine with $2.5 billion in security assistance since 2014, including $400 million in 2021 alone.

Recent deliveries include patrol boats for the Ukrainian navy and 80,000 kilos of ammunition for Ukrainian forces.

Source: https://www.voanews.com/a/us-preparing-for-multiple-contingencies-as-russia-ukraine-tensions-rise-/6325197.html

The post US Preparing for Multiple Contingencies as Russia-Ukraine Tensions Rise first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Sergey Bobylev/TASS

MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. Air defense systems S-300 will impede Israeli Air Force flights, including reconnaissance ones, over Syria. Although Tel-Aviv earlier said it would not give up its operations, the S-300 factor puts pressure on the Israeli leadership, the chief of the Bureau of Military-Political Analysis, Alexander Mikhailov, told TASS on Monday.

Earlier, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Israel would not give up its operations in Syria in defiance of the supply of Russia’s S-300 systems to that country.

“When Russia’s S-300s are turned on over Syrian-Israeli points of engagement, the Israeli pilots know they are on Russian radars. Naturally, they report this to their superiors and this puts pressure on the Israeli leadership,” Mikhailov said.

“The Israeli leadership’s position has been determined – Israel wants to go ahead with unhampered flights over Syria’s border areas and press for its decisions regarding the presence of Iranian forces there, which under our agreements with Israel are now leaving these territories,” Mikhailov said.

He believes that if Israel continues to coordinate its actions with the Russian group in Syria further on, it will be possible to avoid incidents in the future.

“We would like to believe that if Israel and the Israeli Defense Ministry hold consultations with the Russian group in Syria over all activities, no conflicts will ever emerge. I believe that the Israeli leadership will display common sense not to repeat such incidents and to stay out of the areas where our systems are turned on,” Mikhailov said.

He believes that in order to ease tensions Russia should maintain a dialogue with Israel.

“We should conduct a mutually beneficial dialogue with Israel and address it with fresh reminders that combat operations are in progress away from the Russian borders, but near the Israeli ones, so it would make no sense to aggravate the already complicated situation… One would like to believe that the Israeli Defense Ministry will refrain from provoking the Syrian air defense into hitting Israeli aircraft,” he added.

Ilyushin-20 crash in the Mediterranean

Russia’s reconnaissance and radio-electronic warfare plane Ilyushin-20 was shot down over the Mediterranean on September 17 while returning to the Hmeymim airbase. The Russian Defense Ministry said the plane was downed with a missile launched by Syria’s air defense system S-200, which was counterattacking four Israeli jets F-16 during their strikes against targets in Latakia province. The Ilyushin-20’s fifteen crew were killed in the tragedy.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on September 24 said that the loss of the Ilyushin-20 in Syria due to the Israeli air pilots’ actions forced Moscow to take extra security measures. Russia’s air defense systems S-300 will be deployed in Syria within two weeks, the command posts of Syria’s air defense will be equipped with automatic Russian systems capable of identifying Russian planes and Russian means of radio-electronic warfare will pose obstructions to air strikes against targets in Syria.

Source: http://tass.com/defense/1024991

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The post Israel Won’t Stop Ops in Syria Despite S-300 Delivery – Defense Minister first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Russian Air Force Ilyushin Il-20Kirill Naumenko/Wikipedia

–‘Israel launches series of strikes on targets near Syria’s Latakia’
–Russia says Syrian Idlib offensive off the table, Erdogan and Putin agree on buffer zone
–The heart of the Russian air force: The Syrian fighter jet downed by Israel in the Golan Heights

Russia on Tuesday accused Israel of a “hostile provocation” in striking the Syrian port city of Latakia and threatened retaliation after Moscow blamed Israel for indirectly causing a Russian military plane with 15 servicemen on board to be shot down near Syria’s Mediterranean coast.

Russia’s defense ministry accused Israeli military planes of creating a “dangerous” situation in Latakia, near where the aircraft was downed by Syrian air defense systems, as it claimed Israel warned Moscow about the planned operation one minute beforehand, adding that it was not enough time to get the the plane to safety.

The defense ministry said 15 Russian military service people died because of Israel’s “irresponsible actions,” adding that it reserves the right to take appropriate measures after Israel’s hostile actions.

Russian Defence Ministry: Russian Ilyushin Il-20 plane was downed by Syrian Air Defence missile after Israeli F-16 pilots used it as cover thus setting it up to be targeted by AA defence. Such actions can only be classified as a deliberate provocation https://t.co/qBcqPz2en6 pic.twitter.com/21mTTNXmpd

— Russia in RSA ?? (@EmbassyofRussia) September 18, 2018

According to the ministry, the Israeli F-16 jets carrying out the air strikes used the Russian plane as a cover to allow them to approach their targets on the ground without being hit by Syrian anti-aircraft fire.

Infographic of Monday night’s alleged attack and incidentRussian Defense Ministry

“Hiding behind the Russian aircraft, the Israeli pilots put it in the line of fire of Syrian anti-aircraft systems. As a result the Il-20 … was shot down by the (Syrian) S-200 missile system,” Konashenkov said.

He said the Israeli pilots “could not have failed to see the Russian aircraft, as it was coming in to land from a height of 5 km (three miles). Nevertheless, they deliberately carried out this provocation,” Konashenkov said.

Israeli Ambassador to Russia Gary Koren was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry following the incident, and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed his Israeli counterpart, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, that Moscow holds Israel wholly to blame for the shooting down of a Russian military plane near Syria.

The Kremlin was extremely concerned by the incident and President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences for those who were killed, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

The Russian Defense Ministry said a recovery operation in the Mediterranean Sea is underway and that it has already located the wreckage in the sea and has retrieved some bodies and some fragments of the plane.

Screen capture of Twitter video allegedly showing strike attributed to France and Israel in Syria, September 18, 2018 Twitter

A U.S. official earlier said Washington believed the aircraft, which is an Il-20 turbo-prop plane used for electronic reconnaissance, was inadvertently shot down by anti-aircraft artillery operated by Moscow’s ally, the Syrian government.

Around the time the plane disappeared, the Syrian coastal city of Latakia, near a Russian airbase to which the Il-20 was returning, came under attack from “enemy missiles” and missile defence batteries responded, Syrian state media reported.

The defense ministry in Moscow said the aircraft was returning to the Russian-run Hmeymim airbase in Latakia province when, at about 11 P.M. Moscow time (20:00 GMT), it disappeared from radar screens.

The plane was over the Mediterranean Sea about 35 km (20 miles) from the Syrian coastline, Russia’s TASS news agency quoted the ministry as saying in a statement.

“The trace of the Il-20 on flight control radars disappeared during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets on Syrian facilities in Latakia province,” the statement was quoted as saying.

“At the same time Russian air control radar systems detected rocket launches from the French frigate Auvergne which was located in that region.”

The fate of the 14 people on board the missing plane is unknown, and a rescue operation has been organized out of the Hmeymim base, the ministry said.

The Israeli military had no reaction, saying it does not comment on “foreign reports.” French military spokesman Colonel Patrik Steiger told Reuters. “We deny any involvement.”

A series of unusual airstrikes on Syria were attributed to Israel on Monday night. The official SANA news agency reported that ten people were injured in the attack, eight of whom were shortly discharged after being admitted to a nearby hospital.

According to Syrian media, missiles were fired toward military targets close to three large cities in the north of Syria: Lattakia, Homs and Hama.

In recent weeks there has been a significant uptick in the amount of reports attributing attacks to Israel. Previous attacks, according to foreign media, mostly targeted the area of the Damascus International Airport.

Source: https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/russian-military-aircraft-believed-to-be-shot-down-by-syria-defenses-1.6489773

The post Russia Blasts Israel: You’re to Blame for 15 Russians Killed During Syria Strike first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Monday’s unusual incident between Syria and Israel says something about the modern Middle East. Within hours, a routine Israeli surveillance flight over Lebanon had turned into a bombing run 50 kilometers east of Damascus.

Here’s the sequence of events according to the laconic statement issued by the Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson’s Unit: An Israel Air Force plane was taking pictures in Lebanese airspace when an SA-5 missile was launched at it. The missile didn’t threaten the plane, but Israel decided not to let it pass. Two hours later, it attacked the radar of a Syrian anti-aircraft battery and took it out of operation.

Israel believes the Syrian army launched the missile because it feared the IAF planned an offensive strike. Just recently, former IAF commander Amir Eshel told Haaretz that Israel has conducted almost 100 airstrikes in Syria over the last five years against convoys ferrying arms to Hezbollah and other organizations.

Occasionally, these strikes prompt a Syrian response. In March, for instance, the Syrian army fired SA-5 missiles at Israeli fighter planes that were trying to bomb a Hezbollah arms convoy. That incident made waves because Israel, fearing the missiles would land in its territory, intercepted them with its Arrow anti-missile system. But it was preceded by at least three similar cases over the last two years in which Syria fired anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli planes.

The SA-5, developed back in the 1960s, is considered a primitive system, especially compared to the many modern anti-aircraft systems in the region. Its antiquated, horrifically noisy radar can be easily detected by Israeli technology. Thus it’s reasonable to assume the IAF knew the Syrians were operating the system when the morning’s surveillance flight took place.

But the SA-5s are almost completely ineffective against Israeli aircraft, which can maneuver to prevent the antiquated radar from locking in on them. Therefore, it’s no surprise that all the Syrian missiles thus far have missed their targets, with the Israeli jets having plenty of time to take evasive action and return to base safely.

Though Syria’s aerial defense corps has been visibly on edge in recent weeks, defense officials declined to offer a clear explanation for why Israel’s response policy had suddenly changed. Why did Israel decide to bomb the Syrian anti-aircraft battery responsible for the launch, even at the price of increased tension along the already sensitive northern border, when in the past, it has responded far more tepidly, and sometimes even purely defensively, such as by firing off an Arrow missile costing millions of shekels?

The answer might lie in what happened eight hours later in Tel Aviv. Accompanied by a police motorcycle escort, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, on his first visit to Israel, entered army headquarters for a meeting with Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Israel has waited a long time for Shoigu’s official visit, and had planned to use it to demonstrate Iran’s efforts to consolidate its position in Syria.

Russia doesn’t see eye to eye with Israel about the impact of Iran’s activity in the region in general, and Jerusalem is particularly worried over the difference in approach toward Iran’s activity in Syria. Israel believes Iran views Syria as a base for long-term strategic and economic influence, whereas Russia believes the Iranians will leave the country once the Syrian civil war ends.

Thus a new item was added to the agenda of Monday’s meeting, which was also attended by the army chief of staff and the director of Military Intelligence: an update about the Israeli strike in Syria. Message delivered and received.

Gili Cohen – Haaretz Correspondent

Source: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.817629

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