MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The statement comes a day after the Russian Defense Ministry released the aerial images of the Daesh deployment sites north of Syria's Deir ez-Zor, where the equipment of US Army Special Forces is clearly visible but without any signs of the previous fighting between the sides.
“This fact is evident and it is very worrisome, we were convinced yet again that the US side, declaring verbally that it is interested in eliminating Daesh and defeating terrorists in Syria, in practice demonstrates the opposite, that at the end of the day some political and geopolitical tasks are more important for Washington than what has been declared in the counterterrorism fight,” Ryabkov said.
The deputy foreign minister expressed hope that the United States would prove in practice its commitment to fighting terrorism in Syria.
The Russian official underlined that Moscow’s statements on the fight against terrorism in Syria never contradict its actions. He said Russia's purpose in Syria is to "achieve victory over terrorists" and added that Moscow has been "moving forward alongside with the Syrian government to reach this goal.”
The US-led coalition of over 60 nations is conducting airstrikes, ground-based and rocket-propelled artillery fire against Daesh in Syria and Iraq. While the strikes in Iraq are conducted in support of the Iraqi government, those in Syria are not authorized by the UN Security Council or the government of President Bashar Assad.
