War in Syria: Russia’s 'rustbucket' military delivers a hi-tech shock to West and Israel

[Jefferson23]

As the Kremlin showcases its military capabilities in Syria, Kim Sengupta says Nato leaders are having to reassess

Kim Sengupta
6 hours ago

Their army’s equipment and strategy was “outmoded”; their air force’s bombs and missiles were “more dumb than smart”; their navy was “more rust than ready”. For decades, this was Western military leaders’ view, steeped in condescension, of their Russian counterparts. What they have seen in Syria and Ukraine has come as a shock.

Russian military jets have, at times, been carrying out more sorties in a day in Syria than the US-led coalition has done in a month. The Russian navy has launched ballistic missiles from the Caspian Sea 900 miles way, and kept supply lines going to Syria. The air defences installed by the Russians in Syria and eastern Ukraine would make it extremely hazardous for the West to carry out strikes against the Assad regime or Ukrainian separatists.

Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, the commander of the US army in Europe, has described Russian advances in electronic warfare in Syria and Ukraine – a field in which they were typically supposed to be backward – as “eye watering”.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/war-in-syria-russia-s-rustbucket-military-delivers-a-hi-tech-shock-to-west-and-israel-a6842711.html

[MADem]

1. Everyone knows--and has known for some time, now--that Putin's

goal is to pump up the volume on his military might to rival the ostensible 'glory' days of the USSR. He didn't repair, restore and reactivate that Syrian port in Tartus over a year ago for shits-n-giggles.

The Independent is reporting accurate news about Russian activities but framing it in a way that suggests "Ooooooh nooooo--this is a Big Surprise to NATO!" It's nothing of the sort--you'd have to be in a coma to not see what Putin is up to!

All that said, it's never a bad idea to keep up to speed on what Pootie's up to. He's determined to bring back those glory days--I swear, he feels cheated that he isn't running the old Soviet Socialist Republic! He probably hums "One Piece at a Time" as he goes about his daily routine....

[Jefferson23]

2. ha ha..good one with the song.

The tech efficiency aspect surprised me, so yea..we need to be aware
of what he's doing. He's an ambitious prick.

[MADem]

3. The Russians are good at doing things simply (like using a pencil in space instead

of trying to get a pen to work) and they're also good at ripping off technology and copying it (as are the Chinese and others--we probably could do it without any trouble but we tend to innovate--though we're not alone at that anymore).

And you are quite right-- he IS the most ambitious so-n-so I've seen on the world stage in awhile. It is just so OBVIOUS what he wants--he can't even be subtle. He sure doesn't care about appearances, either--the way he jettisoned that wife for the Olympic galpal, and then gave her a prominent position at the Olympic games....well, it had all the trappings of the KING bestowing a bit of grace and favour on an attractive young lady at court!

Anyone who actually had to worry about holding on to power would have played the game, kept the wife on the payroll for public appearances, but he went full-out and he does what he wants--he disappeared for a couple of weeks and didn't really tell anyone why (I think there was the classic "flu" excuse) and some thought he got a little 'work' done--a few hairs transplanted, a bit of plastic surgery here and there, etc. And then there was the "girlfriend had a baby" story of last year. He's just playing it like he doesn't give a crap, that it's "Good to be the King!"

The POST headline at this link is hilarious: http://nypost.com/2015/03/15/swiss-media-reveals-more-about-putins-girlfriend-baby/

[bemildred]

4. New Rules of Engagement on the Battlefield and in the Diplomatic Arena

A source who’s a senior officer within the joint operation command consisting of Syria, Russia, Iran, Hezbollah has said “Russia has established new rules of engagement on the Syrian-Turkish border, and has retained the upper hand for the Syrian air force and the Syrian army, Russia also refurbished and upgraded custom made Syrian MiG29, to protect the Russian air force squadrons, with clear orders to shoot down Turkish planes that enter the Syrian air space”

The source goes on to say to Al Rai, “The agreement previously concluded with Turkey during the presidency of the late Hafez Assad in 1998, which says no Syrian air force units should come within 15 Km of the Turkish-Syrian border on Syria’s side (the agreement by which Syria expelled the Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, after Turkey, having amassed 10,000 soldiers, threatened to invade Syria), the agreement also included that no army battalions are to be deployed, and that only officers and border control personnel are allowed, this has all gone down the drain”, adding “gone is the time of retracting the statement “Iskandaron strip will be liberated” from school books, gone also is the time of Turkey downing a Syrian air craft and/or helicopter. Turkey’s dream of creating a safe zone is dead in the water, and with it the supply lines to send men and arms to the Syrian Turkmen to undermine Damascus. After Russia’s direct intervention in Syria, there has been drastic changes, especially after the downing of the Russian bomber Sukhoi Su-24 by Turkish F16’s last November, thus making this particular bomber the costliest of its kind, causing strategic and economic losses to Istanbul”

The source further explains “that Russia since the downing of its plane, brought in Sukhoi Su-30, which will deliver to the Russians air-supremacy that was missing before, also posting the anti-aircraft S400 missile system, Russia has further deployed heavier assault weapons and regained most of the Latakia governorate, it has broken the Syrian Turkmen militias that’s considered the military arm of Turkey, most importantly it has given the SAA a moral boost, having upgraded the MiG29 to MiG29-SM, installing them with ZHUK-M radar that is able to track 10 targets, and engage with 4 at one particular moment, covering 120Km having 5Km width, it is now able to launch the lethal R77 missiles, also installed on these air crafts along with other gadgets is a radio jamming device, and the upgrading enables it to carry other highly developed missiles and bombs such as the KAB-500S-E. These upgrades make the MiG39-SM the most advanced in the fourth generation line up”.

The senior source confirms “Russia has requested from Syria to conduct around the clock patrols on the Syrian-Turkish border, to ensure the safety of the Russian bombers, Russia having established new rules of engagement have authorized the Syrian air force, specifically the MiG29-SM squadron, to engage with any Turkish targets that have violated Syrian air space or attempts to violate. By doing this Russia has given Syria its sovereignty back having lost it in 1998, and completely losing it in 2011 at the start of the revolution in Syria, as of today Syria air forces have a mandate to strike any violation without confirming with HQ, this in turn has given the Syrians a boost of morale, especially as they have been given a mandate by a super power like Russia that is physically present in Syria”

http://fortruss.blogspot.de/2016/01/new-rules-of-engagement-on-battlefield.html

[bemildred]

6. Moscow to test next-generation of Su-35S fighters against terrorist organizations in Syria- sources

Moscow, SANA- A Russian military source on Monday declared that Russia is preparing to test the next-generation of Su-35S fighters for the first time in its air operations against the terrorist organizations in Syria.

The Russian Kommersant newspaper cited the source as saying “The Russian General Staff has decided to run a field test of the brand-new Su-35S in Syria for the first time ever,”

The first four jets were handed over to the Russian Aerospace Forces last fall. Several days ago, they were transported to Hmeymim Airport to the northwest of Syria, according to the newspaper.

On Sept. 30th, the Russian Air Force started an air campaign against ISIS and other terrorist organizations in Syria in coordination with the Syrian Arab Army.

http://sana.sy/en/?p=68057

[bemildred]

9. 4 Sukhoi Su-35S fighters strengthen Russian aviation group in Syria

The Russian military command has decided to test the brand-new Sukhoi Su-35S fighter jet in a combat environment for the first time ever, the newspaper Kommersant wrote on Feb. 1.

"These are the four planes delivered to the Russian Aerospace Forces by the aircraft plant based in Komsomolsk-on-Amur in October-November of last year," the newspaper said, adding that "the information was unofficial."

According to the information posted by the newspaper, the planes were initially attached to the 23rd fighter aircraft regiment of the 303rd guard combined aviation division of the 11th Air Force and Air Defense Army of the Eastern Military district stationed at the Dzengi airfield and relocated to the Privolzhsky airfield in Astrakhan in a later period. "Several days ago the Su-35S jets departed from Astrakhan, flew over the Caspian Sea, Iran and Iraq and arrived in the Hmeimim airbase," the report said.

The Sukhoi Su-35 jet was created by the Sukhoi Design Bureau. It is a profoundly modernized super-maneuverable multirole fighter jet of generation 4++, incorporating fifth-generation technologies which make it superior to fighters of a similar class.

http://rbth.com/defence/2016/02/01/4-sukhoi-su-35s-fighters-strengthen-russian-aviation-group-in-syria_563941

[bemildred]

5. Russia Is Exploiting Syria's Kurds And U.S. Frustrations To Complicate The Fight Against ISIS

WASHINGTON -- As Syria peace talks begin in Geneva, America's key partners on the ground feel neglected, excluded and increasingly receptive to a man who says the U.S has the war-torn country all wrong -- Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin's government this week used the process of deciding who would attend the negotiations to endear Russia to the Syrian Kurds, whose militia has chalked up high-profile victories against the self-described Islamic State group with U.S. air support.

Moscow repeatedly demanded that the talks should include the most powerful Kurdish political organization, the radically leftist PYD. Its co-president Salih Muslim said this week that the party -- controversial among Western and Muslim-backed Syrian Arab nationalist groups -- did not receive an invitation. The Middle East Eye reported Friday that he stopped by Geneva and then promptly left.

Conversely, Washington stayed relatively silent.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/russia-is-exploiting-syrias-kurds-and-americas-frustrations-to-complicate-the-fight-against-isis_us_56acf277e4b077d4fe8e5076?ir=World&section=australia&utm_hp_ref=world

[bemildred]

7. (Cockburn) Turkey’s Syrian Calculation: Gambling on an Invasion?

A month before Turkey shot down a Russian bomber which it accused of entering its airspace, Russian military intelligence had warned President Vladimir Putin that this was the Turkish plan. Diplomats familiar with the events say that Putin dismissed the warning, probably because he did not believe that Turkey would risk provoking Russia into deeper military engagement in the Syrian war.

In the event, on 24 November last year a Turkish F-16 shot down a Russian bomber, killing one of the pilots, in an attack that had every sign of being a well-prepared ambush. Turkey claimed that it was responding to the Russian plane entering its airspace for 17 seconds, but the Turkish fighters made every effort to conceal themselves by flying at low altitude, and they appear to have been on a special mission to destroy the Russian aircraft.

The shooting-down – the first of a Russian plane by a Nato power since the Korean War – is important because it shows how far Turkey will go to maintain its position in the war raging on the southern side of its 550-mile border with Syria. It is a highly relevant event today because, two months further on, Turkey now faces military developments in northern Syria that pose a much more serious threat to its interests than that brief incursion into its airspace, even though Ankara made fresh claims yesterday over a new Russian violation on Friday.

http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/02/01/turkeys-syrian-calculation-gambling-on-an-invasion/

[bemildred]

8. US anti-ISIL envoy visits Kurdish, Arab fighters in Syria: Sources

A delegation including senior US diplomat Brett McGurk met members of a Kurd-Arab alliance fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) jihadist group inside Syria, Kurdish sources said Jan. 31.

The weekend visit to the war-torn country -- confirmed by a US official -- appeared to be the first by a senior US government figure inside Syrian territory.

McGurk, who is US President Barack Obama's envoy to an international coalition fighting ISIL in Syria and Iraq, was accompanied by French and British officials, the sources told AFP.

One Kurdish source close to the meeting said a "high-level military delegation from the international coalition (against ISIL)," met Jan. 30 with senior members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/us-anti-isil-envoy-visits-kurdish-arab-fighters-in-syria-sources-.aspx?pageID=238&nID=94587&NewsCatID=352

[bemildred]

14. US official visits northern Syrian town of Kobani

BAGHDAD (AP) -- President Barack Obama's envoy to the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group visited northern Syria over the weekend, according to a coalition official.

Brett McGurk's visit to the town of Kobani was the first known visit by a senior U.S. official to Syrian territory since the beginning of the U.S.-led campaign against IS in August 2014.

McGurk was joined by British and French officials in Kobani, where Kurdish forces aided by U.S.-led airstrikes drove back IS militants a year ago, handing the extremists one of their biggest defeats.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief media.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ML_ISLAMIC_STATE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-02-01-07-01-14

[bemildred]

15. PYD co-chair Moslem: We won't recognise a Geneva-3 excluding Kurds

NEWS DESK - SERKAN DEMİREL- RÜŞTÜ DEMİRKAYA - ANF

Democratic Union Party (PYD) co-chair Saleh Moslem stressed that it was not only Turkey but also some other forces that didn't want the participation of Kurds in the Geneva-3 meeting to avoid their attainment of political status. He underlined that those disapproving PYD's presence in Geneva talks wanted to seek a political solution for Syria together with the groups bearing ISIS mentality.

Moslem spoke to ANF regarding the details of the Geneva-3 Conference in search of a solution to the crisis in Syria, and their stance towards the talks.

Everyone has taken your participation in Geneva-3 for granted. Was your exclusion a last-minute decision?

We cannot say that it was an entirely last-minute decision, but the situation wasn't very clear in advance. Yet, everyone was expecting our participation as many circles agreed on the fact that Kurds, mainly PYD and Autonomous Administration, were definitely needed at the table for the achievement of a political resolution for Syria, and that such a force and system in Syria couldn't go ignored. The organizers of these talks are still telling the same thing. Yet, we knew already in advance that this issue would still be made a matter of negotiation.

To the sides we have held talks with, we have been telling since the very beginning that we need to take part in these talks. Those who would thus far defend that our participation was not necessary are now saying that our presence as of the first day would cause a huge conflict. For this reason, they say we will be included not in the first place but later on.

http://anfenglish.com/features/pyd-co-chair-moslem-we-won-t-recognise-a-geneva-3-excluding-kurds

[bemildred]

10. Kerry's Russia Problem

As Secretary of State John Kerry works to cajole his Russian counterpart to help end the war in Syria, his State Department is planning this week to ban more Russian nationals from the U.S. and its financial system for the murder of a Russian lawyer in 2009.

The pending sanctions illustrate how President Barack Obama's Russia policy is a balancing act: Even as the U.S. punishes President Vladimir Putin's aides and allies, it still pursues Russia's cooperation in the Middle East. The same week Kerry has been urging Russia to help end the war in Syria, a senior Treasury official let it slip that Putin is hiding a personal fortune from his own people.

This week, the pattern will continue. State Department officials tell me they expect to add five more names to what is known as the Magnitsky list, named for Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who was jailed after exposing Russia’s largest-known tax fraud and died in prison in 2009, after he was severely beaten. Russian courts have made a mockery of the investigation, leading Congress to pass a law in 2012 blacklisting the people responsible for Magnitsky's murder in the U.S.

http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2016-02-01/kerry-s-russia-problem

[Jefferson23]

16. Interesting additions, thank you..especially this one. That is some balancing act, and

if Nemtsov had not been murdered he could have possibly put that info
to good use too.

[bemildred]

11. Syrian children found in Turkish garment factories making British high street brands

H&M and Next, two of Europe’s biggest garment retailers, have found Syrian refugee children working in their supplier factories in Turkey, according to a report by a company ethics watchdog.

Of the 28 major brands questioned by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRCC) about conditions at their supplier factories in Turkey and the potential exploitation of undocumented Syrian children and adults, only H&M and Next confessed to finding children working in the factories.

New report: Company action to address exploitation of Syrian refugees in Turkish garment factories: https://t.co/xlqKrlrPOT
— BusinessHumanRights (@BHRRC) February 1, 2016

The admission has sparked concerns that the problem may be much more widespread and that many of the companies are keeping quiet about abuse.

https://www.rt.com/uk/330849-syrian-refugee-children-factories/

[bemildred]

12.  The Feminist, Democratic Leftists Our Military Is Obliterating

 Right now, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is undertaking a massive assault on Kurdish communities in southeastern Turkey in an effort to wipe out the only truly democratic movement in the Middle East. In December, he unleashed a force of 10,000 soldiers, armed with tanks and mortars, who have cut water and electricity supplies, imposed draconian curfews, and razed buildings; they are following shoot-to-kill orders against local residents who venture from their homes to seek food, first aid, or alternative shelter. Already more than 200 Kurdish defenders, and 198 civilians, including children, teenagers, and the elderly, have been murdered. In photos, the areas under siege look like war zones, comparable in destruction to Syria and Bosnia.

Reuters estimates that as of late December 200,000 people from 19 cities had been displaced, becoming refugees in their own country. Erdogan has justified this rampage in the southeast as an act to “cleanse every place” of militant Kurds affiliated with the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK), the organization that has fought the Turkish state for independence on behalf of some 15 million Kurds living within its borders who’ve been subjected to decades of repression.

 The PKK is labeled a terrorist organization, not just by Turkey but also by the United States and many countries in Europe. This label has stuck despite the fact that the PKK in 1999 initiated a unilateral cease-fire that lasted until 2004, and in 2013 again halted its violent confrontation with the Turkish state for two years, trying to negotiate peacefully for greater autonomy for Kurds until Erdogan withdrew his support for the talks.

European Union parliamentarians from Holland, Denmark, and Iceland have stated recently that the EU countries’ continued designation of the PKK as a terrorist organization is hypocritical, because Europe supports the PKK’s Syrian Kurdish sister militias, the People’s Protection Units (the YPG and the all-female YPJ), which have successfully fought off the Islamic State and are ideologically allied with the PKK. Worse, they say, the designation is hampering peace by giving Erdogan license to abandon the negotiations with the PKK that began in 2013 and ended last year. It’s no accident that Erdogan’s assault on Kurdish cities was stepped up dramatically just days after the EU voted against delisting the PKK as a terrorist organization, and that some of those murdered have been members of a Kurdish opposition political party.

http://www.thenation.com/article/the-feminist-democratic-leftists-our-military-is-obliterating/

[bemildred]

13. . nt