"Before embarking on unconvincing arguments about the alleged Russian responsibility for the situation in Syria, the British defense minister should think of what Britain on its part has done in this embattled country. Tell me, Mr. Fallon, how many settlements have returned to regular civilian life thanks to Britain, how many pounds of humanitarian aid have been delivered to the Syrians, how many square feet of the territory have been liberated from terrorists by your country?" Konashenkov said.
"Where was the United Kingdom when the Daesh almost reached the shores of the Mediterranean, almost turning Syria into a terrorist caliphate, as it happened in Libya? After all, you roamed the sky above Syria before the arrival of the Russian Aerospace Forces. So who should be told to take responsibility for the emergence and indulgence of the Daesh and the branch and al-Qaeda the Nusra Front [currently known as Jabhat Fatah al Sham], which has been effectively fought by the Russian Aerospace Forces?" Konashenkov added.
Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with opposition factions and Islamist terrorist groups fighting the Syrian army. The Russian Aerospace Forces began their operation against terrorists in Syria on September 30, 2015, at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
The US-led coalition, including the United Kingdom among some 60 nations, has been fighting terrorists separately, but without either Damascus' or the UN Security Council's approval.