Syria: We believe that Russian Federation has the wrong strategy, says US

Four warships in the Caspian Sea fired 26 missiles and hit 11 targets in Syria, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.

The so-called “deconfliction” talks came after Russian Federation began bombing in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against Isis (Islamic State) and other rebel groups.

Russia’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday said it is open to the idea of coordinating with the United States to fight Islamic State extremists in Syria. He also said that Russian planes continued to carry out airstrikes on Wednesday.

According to the Syrian official, the government push is concentrated in the adjacent provinces of Hama and Idlib where rebels have been advancing in the past months.

But the USA and France say at least a few of the strikes appear to have hit Western-backed rebel factions fighting government troops, with the real goal of protecting Assad.

The ground offensive, backed by Russian strikes, could crush moderate opposition forces and strengthen Assad’s regime.

Ready, aim, fire… An image grab made from a video released by the Russian Defence Ministry reportedly shows a Russian warship launching a cruise missile in the Caspian Sea during a strike against Islamic State (IS) group’s positions in Syria.

BEIRUT (AP) – The latest developments after Syrian troops, emboldened by Russian airstrikes, launch a ground offensive against insurgents (all times local).

Russia’s drive for more clout in the Middle East includes a new security and intelligence-sharing agreement with Iran, Iraq and Syria with a command centre in Baghdad.

It is too early, as the Kremlin admits, to assess how effective Russia’s week-long military assault on the Islamic State in Syria has been. The official said it was far enough away that there was no danger and was probably unintentional.

Russia’s defence minister says his country is using warships in the Caspian Sea to target I.S in Syria.

Adml Vladimir Komoyedov, the head of Russia’s parliamentary defence committee, had also been quoted as saying that Russian veterans would “emerge” as part of the Syrian army.

Russian Federation has also sent in a battalion of elite Spetsnaz fighters into Syria to take on ISIS.

“We are not prepared to cooperate in a strategy, which as we explained, is flawed – tragically flawed – on the Russians’ part”, Carter told a news conference during a trip to Rome.

“We benefit from this war and these (rival) coalitions, ‘ he said in a conversation via Skype, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk on the group’s behalf”.

In the past, the Obama administration has publicly held out hope – however faint – that Moscow might cooperate in the military campaign against the Islamic State.

U.S. and Russian officials have held discussions on how to avoid possible accidents with their respective warplanes in action over Syria at the same time.

A report Wednesday said Russian jets had shadowed a USA drone, but a senior defense official downplayed the seriousness of the incident.