In an attempt to predict Russia’s further moves in Syria, US diplomacy expert Robert Farley has put forward what he considers “Russia’s five next big moves in Syria”, which are set to come in the nearest days or weeks; however, as it turns out, the first four are already very active on the ground. 1.The Arrival of the Su-25 Grach (NATO Reporting Name “Frogfoot”) [...]

Jihadists in Syria pose a direct threat to Russia, Putin has told a defense meeting in Moscow, adding that any targets threatening the country's military there should be destroyed. Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Islamic State’s influence in Syria continues to expand. [...]

It must be difficult to be Syrian today. Not only are you seeing your country crumble before your very eyes and overrun by foreigners intent on imposing a system you never requested, but when you attempt to say what your aspirations are, you are ignored. [...]

Turkey’s “incursion” into Iraq is a cold, calculated move. And once again, the name of the game is – what else? – Divide and Rule. Turkey sent to Iraqi Kurdistan – which is part of the state of Iraq - no less than a 400-strong battalion supported by 25 M-60A3 tanks. [...]

Four Western coalition warplanes were spotted over the Deir az-Zor area in Syria on December 6, when a Syrian Army camp came under attack. No Russian warplanes were in the region, says the Russian Defense Ministry. “Russian aircraft were not on a mission in that area. [...]

An advanced Kilo-class submarine has appeared near the Syrian coast, according to a source within the Russian MoD. The Rostov-on-Don sub is equipped with modern Russian Kalibr cruise missiles. In mid-November, there were reports of the same submarine striking targets in the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa. [...]

In two weeks we have seen two apparent acts of war by the US-led NATO military alliance in Syria. First, the Turkish shoot-down of a Russian warplane inside Syrian airspace; now this week the Syrian army is hit in a deadly airstrike. Despite absurd denials, the grim conclusion is that NATO is at war in Syria. [...]

London's air operation against Islamic State in Syria is illegal and therefore will not be successful, like the bombing of the US-led coalition in the country over the last year, Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an interview with The Sunday Times newspaper. The support of the British parliament for the air operation in Syria advocated by Prime Minister David Cameron cannot change the fact [...]

Since Russia stepped up to the plate, suddenly western countries can’t wait to bomb ISIS. Are they now there to get the job done? Or are they there to stop Russia increasing its influence, and to make sure it doesn’t succeed where they failed? The world is falling over itself to bomb Syria. [...]

Obama’s promise not to send any boots on the ground goes against the actions that the US government wants to take. Scott Bennett - former US Army officer and counterterrorism analyst spoke in an exclusive interview with Sputnik regarding this manifestation. “If the US sends its troops on the ground then that is a declaration of war, bypassing around the US Congress which means it’s uncons [...]

Prime minister David Cameron’s argument in the Commons for permission to bomb Syria was not based on any new or coherent strategy. As he himself pointed out, it merely follows the logic of a previous vote to bomb Iraq. Even so, like Tony Blair before the Iraq invasion of 2003, he had to rely on abusing his opponents, scaring the public and disseminating dubious intelligence. [...]

Russian aviation has conducted 431 sorties and hit 1,458 terrorist targets in seven Syrian provinces over the past week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday. "Over the past week (from November 26 to December 4), Russian aviation has carried out 431 sorties from the Hmeymim airbase and conducted pinpoint strikes on 1,458 terrorist targets in the provinces of Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, Hama, Ho [...]

The Syrian army liberated a number of key areas in the coastal northwestern Syrian province of Latakia, with Russia's aerial assistance, military sources told Iranian media on Friday. The Russian Aerospace Forces have been carrying out airstrikes against terrorist targets across eight Syrian provinces, including Latakia, at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad, since September 30. [...]

A new war will not increase the prospects of peace in Syria, nor will the British people be safer from terrorism.' Amid warnings that "new war will not increase the prospects of peace," the UK carried out its first airstrikes in Syria on Thursday, just hours after members of Parliament voted to expand the use of military force in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS). [...]

So why did Washington take virtually forever to not really acknowledge ISIS/ISIL/Daesh is selling stolen Syrian oil that will eventually find is way to Turkey? Because the priority all along was to allow the CIA – in the shadows – to run a “rat line” weaponizing a gaggle of invisible “moderate rebels”. [...]

In the wake of Turkey’s shoot down of the Russian Su-24, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the attack a planned provocation. He went further on to suggest the US had given Turkey permission to shoot down the Jet. He explained that countries using US manufactured weapons must ask the US for permission before using them in operations. [...]

President Erdogan's mistake in shooting down the Russian Su-24 bomber 'has waived the green light' for Russia to initiate a 'no-fly zone' by deploying additional fighter power and air defense systems in Syria, US columnist Jim W. Dean notes. The US-led coalition's recent provocation against the Russo-Syrian counter terrorism campaign has "put nothing but torpedoes into its own sinking internati [...]

Recep Erdogan is an international outlaw, US author Stephen Lendman deems, referring to the Turkish president's alleged involvement in Daesh's illicit oil smuggling, refining and sales on the black market. There is no trace of doubt in Ankara's full involvement and knowledge of the ongoing illicit trade between Turkey and Daesh (IS/ISIL), US author and syndicated columnist Stephen Lendman stres [...]

Terrorism is increasing worldwide because of the US-led Western interventionism, former Republican congressman Ron Paul said, adding that US warhawks are using events such as the killings in Paris to terrify Americans into agreeing to more occupation, more bombing. The United States has dragged itself into a vicious circle of interventionism, according to former US Republican congressman Dr. Ro [...]

A Pentagon spokesman rejected Russia’s evidence of Turkey’s involvement in oil deals with Islamic State militants, calling Turkey a “great partner” just a day after his boss complained to Congress that Ankara was not fighting ISIS enough. “Let me be very clear that we flatly reject any notion that the Turks are somehow working with ISIL,” said Colonel Steve Warren, spokesman for th [...]

The deputy minister pointed out that Russia had warned about “the danger of flirting with terrorists” on numerous occasions, saying Ankara’s actions were “adding fuel to the fire.” “A united team of criminals and Turkish elites, involved in stealing oil from its neighbors, is acting in the region. This oil in being supplied to Turkey on a large industrial scale via improvised pipeli [...]

Turkey’s leadership, including President Erdogan and his family, is involved in illegal oil trade with Islamic State militants, says the Russian Defense Ministry, stressing that Turkey is the final destination for oil smuggled from Syria and Iraq. The Russian Defense Ministry held a major briefing on new findings concerning IS funding in Moscow on Wednesday. [...]