Russia implies US behind Syria drone attacks
Russia says it repelled 13 drones attacks and the data required for the series of attacks could only have been obtained ''from one of the countries that possesses know-how in satellite navigation."
This photo provided on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2018 by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets, shows the civil defense workers extinguishing fire following a bombing that targeted the office of Ajnad al-Koukaz, a militant group consisting of foreign fighters mostly from the Caucuses and Russia, in Idlib, Syria.
Russia said on Tuesday that a recent series of drone attacks on its military bases in Syria would have required assistance from a country possessing satellite navigation technology — a statement that appeared to be aimed at the United States.
Russia's defence ministry said its forces repelled a series of drone attacks Saturday on the Hemeimeem air base and a naval facility in Tartus, adding that out of the 13 drones involved, seven were shot down and six were forced to land without inflicting any damage.
Hints to US
Without blaming any specific country, the ministry said data for the attacks could only have been obtained "from one of the countries that possesses know-how in satellite navigation."
In Tuesday's statement, it noted a "strange coincidence" of a US military intelligence plane flying over the Mediterranean near the two Russian bases at the moment of the attack.
The US and Russia support opposing sides of the Syrian civil war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who us Syrian regime leader Bashar al Assad's main ally, ordered a partial troops pullout in Syria last month, and the Kremlin said late Monday that the number of Russian troops left in Syria is sufficient for fending off any attacks by militants.
Asked Tuesday whether the withdrawal could have been premature in view of the drone attack, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian forces in Syria have "all the necessary means" to counter any challenge.
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