US Ground Presence in Syria May Lead to Unintended US-Russia Confrontation

© AFP 2023 / Noorullah Shirzada / FILESPentagon pledges to send more boots on the ground in Syria, "if it finds capable and motivated groups willing to find ISIL".
Pentagon pledges to send more boots on the ground in Syria, if it finds capable and motivated groups willing to find ISIL. - Sputnik International
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The decision by the United States to deploy an additional 50 special operation forces to Syria raises the potential for an unintended US-Russia confrontation, US Senator Chris Murphy told Sputnik.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Leandra Bernstein — On October 30, the White House revealed plans to send up to 50 special operations troops to Syria to assist US-allied moderates.

"One of my concerns about putting ground troops inside Syria is that there is the possibility that misplaced Russian bombs could eventually fall on American troops," Murphy stated on Tuesday.

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On Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter announced the possibility of sending additional US forces to Syria to partner with Syrian-Arab ground forces against the Islamic State.

Murphy explained that he has "many reservations" about putting additional US troops on the ground in Syria. "One of them is that we have to be honest about the potential for stray Russian ordinance," he explained.

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The United States and Russia have engaged in tactical deconfliction exercises to ensure the safety of flights in Syria, but the scope of the cooperation is narrow.

Murphy raised concerns about the "limitations to deconfliction," noting that the military coordination is good "but nothing is foolproof."

On Tuesday a group of US Senators received a classified briefing on the state of the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria by the new US head of the 65-nation coalition against the Islamic State, Brett McGurk.

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