Pentagon Says No Plans to Identify Daesh Targets With Russia

US Department of Defense spokesman Peter Cook said that the United States has no plans to work with Russia to identify Daesh targets.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States has no plans to work with Russia to identify Daesh targets but recognizes the importance of the deconfliction mechanism to prevent a repeat of the September 17 airstrike that killed Syrian military forces, US Department of Defense spokesman Peter Cook said in a press briefing on Tuesday.

"We have no plans at this point to cooperate with Russia in that way," Cook stated when asked if Washington would cooperate with Moscow to validate Daesh targets in Syria.

However, he noted the United States recognizes the significance of the deconfliction channel as an important line of communication to ensure the safety US and Russian air crews operating over Syria.

Earlier on Tuesday, the US Central Command released the results of an investigation into the September airstrike that killed 62 Syrian military personnel and injured more than 100.

The investigation concluded that human error was a major factor in US and coalition analysts mistakenly identifying the Syrian personnel as Islamic State fighters, and recommended enhancing deconfliction efforts with Russia to prevent future incidents.