US Does Not Assess Near Miss With Russian Jet in Syria to Be ‘Nefarious Intent’

The United States does not believe there was any malicious intent on the part of a Russian jet that came within a half-mile of a US aircraft over Syria earlier this month, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesperson Col. John Dorrian said in a briefing on Friday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US military did not immediately report the close call between American and Russian aircraft in Syria in order not to turn it into a major incident, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Air Force Col. John Dorrian said in a briefing on Friday.

"There was an immediate contact between the aircraft and then follow-up through the deconfliction channel that we’ve been working with the Russians," Dorrian told reporters. "The coalition…does not assess this to be something that was done with nefarious intent."

Earlier in the day, US Air Force Central Command chief Lt. Gen. Jeff Harrigian said a Russian military jet flew dangerously close to a US plane over Syria on October 17. The commander asserted that the incident had no nefarious intent.

"It was not reported to the public because we have a deconfliction channel to discuss these incidents with the Russians," Dorrian told reporters. "The deconfliction channel is not one that is necessarily designed for public disclosure, and really the purpose of that is to do the exact opposite of turning it into a major incident is really more intended to keep the temperature down between us and the Russians."

Dorrian identified the Russian aircraft as a fighter jet and the coalition plane as a "larger-framed aircraft that we don’t provide additional detail on."