Russian embassy once again warns US that its forces are present in Syria illegitimately - TASS

The United States’ military presence in Syria is illegal, hence, Washington has no right to criticize Russia, which is acting in that country legitimately, at the invitation of the Syrian authorities, the Russian embassy in the United States said on Wednesday.

"We would like to remind: US military presence in Syria is illegal in the first place. So the US does not have any right to criticize legitimate actions of the Russian Armed Forces which operate in Syria on the invitation of the Syrian Government," it wrote on its Twitter account.

The tweet followed Tuesday’s report by Sean O’Donnell, acting inspector general, Department of Defense, where he claimed that Russia was violating the de-conflictation processes inn northeastern Syria. "While Russian forces largely adhered to the de-conflictation processes, violations increased slightly compared to the previous quarter," it said.

According to the US side, violations include adding of an extra vehicle to the pre-arranged patrols and failing to provide proper notification about the movement of military transport and fighter jets from Russia to Syria. "These violations did not pose a threat to Coalition forces," the document said.

Russia is helping Syria’s legitimate government eliminate terrorists and is encouraging the Syrian sides to establish political dialogue. Unlike Russia, the United States is present in Syria with no invitation from that country’s government.