US Should Assist Iraq to ‘Exclude Russian Aircraft’ From Its Airspace

The United States should continue to demand that Iraq bans Russian aircraft from flying in its airspace, US Senator Tom Cotton said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Cotton stated:

"We should renew our request that they [Iraq] exclude Russian aircraft from their airspace, and our militaries to be prepared to assist them in excluding Russian aircraft from their airspace."

On September 30, Russia began an air campaign against Islamic State terrorists in Syria on a request from Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Russia, Syria, Iran and Iraq have established the Baghdad Information Center in the Iraqi capital to coordinate intelligence and security cooperation against the Islamic State.

A US-led coalition of some 60 nations has also been bombing Islamic State positions in Syria since September 2014, but without the approval of the UN Security Council or the Syrian government.

The United States, which has been supporting the so-called moderate Syrian opposition and calling for Assad to step down, has accused Russia of targeting Assad’s opponents rather than Islamic State positions.

Russia has dismissed such allegations, noting that they lack factual evidence.