Syrian army using new Russian weapons

The West has raised concern over signs of an ongoing Russian military buildup in Syria’s coastal province of Latakia, which Washington says signals Moscow’s intention to set up a forward air base there.

Kerry did not indicate whether the talks covered the US-led fight against Islamic State jihadists, who hold a wide swath of territory in Syria and Iraq.

Moscow says the Syrian government should be part of a broad coalition to fight Islamic State.

Countries including the United States, Turkey and Saudi Arabia want to see Assad gone from power and have supported the opposition to his rule during the four-year-old war, including some of the armed groups fighting him.

The White House on Thursday repeated its long-standing assertion that the Assad government was responsible for the disaster in Syria and the growth of Islamic State.

“He noted that defeating (Islamic State militants) and ensuring a political transition are objectives that need to be pursued at the same time”, the Pentagon said.

The White House, Pentagon and State Department are considering it, and Kerry suggested that he favored such an idea.

“From the very beginning of the conflict Russian Federation has been timely providing assistance to Syria“, he said, according to TASS, and “admitted that Russia’s firm stance has had an increasing influence on the Western countries’ approaches to the Syrian crisis“. “Both the secretary and the minister agreed to continue their dialogue”.

Behind the scenes, an apparent build-up up of Russian military hardware for the forces of President Bashar al-Assad.

The growing Russian military presence in Syria, not least the deployment of surface-to-air missiles to defend the airfield at Latakia, means Washington and Moscow have a lot to talk about.

However, a recent increase in weapons deliveries from Russian Federation underlines the desperate military position Assad is now facing.

Even if Russians operated the missiles and kept them out of the hands of the Syrian army, the arrival of such an advanced anti-aircraft system could unsettle Israel.

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier on Friday that Moscow would consider sending Russian troops to Syria if “a request” was made.

So far, Iran and Hezbollah have been the main suppliers of military aid to Damascus in the conflict.