"The Eastern military district is surprised by attempts of correspondents of the online media outlet to link the routine activity of the forces to the events in the Middle East," the ministry’s press service said.
The relocation of military units as part of combat training events comes only within the Eastern military district and in line with the schedule, it said.
The Gazeta.ru news portal has published a journalist investigation claiming that Russia’s contract soldiers have refused to be sent to Syria. Russia’s presidential council for human rights has in its turn asked the Defence Ministry to look into the reports.
Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Muallem on Thursday said Damascus would ask Russia to send its troops to fight on the side of the Syrian army if such a need arose. According to him, Syria will not hesitate to ask for support from Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Friday Russia will consider Syria’s request to send troops if Damascus asks for it, but it is hard to talk about hypothetically.
The Pentagon earlier reported that Russia might begin preparations for the construction of an air base near the Syrian city of Latakia. First Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff Nikolay Bogdanovsky said there are no such plans but "anything may happen."
Syria’s Tartus hosts Russian Navy’s material-technical support facility.
[tass.ru]
18/9/15
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US to start military talks with Russia over Syria...
ReplyDeleteThe United States is planning direct talks between Russian and American military officials over Russia's growing involvement in Syria, US Secretary of State John Kerry has said.
Kerry said on Friday that President Barack Obama believed military-to-military discussions with Russia were "an important step" to resolve a worsening Syria crisis.
The announcement came days after the idea was broached by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a phone call with Kerry.
According to Kerry, the Pentagon would take the lead in the discussions, but did not elaborate on the exact level, venue and timing.
Later on Friday, US Defence Secretary Ash Carter and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made the first call since August 2014, the Pentagon said.
"They agreed to further discuss mechanisms for deconfliction in Syria and the counter-ISIL campaign," the Pentagon said, using an acronym for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) armed group.
Russian troops
Meanwhile, a Russian media report has claimed that some Russian military contractors are being sent to Syria without their consent.
The report, published by the Russian online newspaper gazeta.ru on Friday, said that 20 troops, including officers and contracted soldiers, were selected from a military unit of Russia's Eastern military district command and sent on a mission without being told about the final destination.
According to the contractors cited in the report, the commander only told them at the beginning that they might be sent to a "hot country". On September 16, they were informally told by a representative of a military chief about the secretly planned deployment to the Syria's Latakia, prompting protest from "almost everyone".
"Some two or three soldiers, due to their young age and youth and credulity, were thinking the commanders would not dare send us to Syria, and we will be deployed in Crimea or Ossetia instead," a contractor was quoted as saying.
"We don't want to go to Syria, we don't want to die there," the publication quoted one of the lieutenants as saying.
The contractors sought to hand in their resignation on the same day, but the documents were rejected................http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/09/start-military-talks-russia-syria-150918140125596.html
18/9/15