Russia: Syria deal bans U.S.-led coalition aircraft
U.S. NAVY
A Tomahawk cruise missile is launched from the USS Ross in a strike on a Syrian air base on April 7. President Donald Trump called the strike a response to the Syrian government’s chemical weapons attack this week that killed more than 80 civilians.
MOSCOW >> Russia’s representative at the Syria talks says the “de-escalation zones” will be closed to military aircraft from the U.S.-led coalition.
Alexander Lavrentyev’s comments today come a day after talks in Kazakhstan where Russia, Iran and Turkey agreed to establish the zones in Syria. Under the Russian plan, President Bashar Assad’s air force would halt flights over the designated areas across the war-torn country.
Lavrentyev, whose remarks were carried by Russian news agencies, said U.S.-led coalition aircraft would be able to operate against the Islamic State group in specific areas, but the “de-escalation zones” were now closed to their flights.
The agreement is the latest attempt to reduce violence in the Arab country. But the full details of the proposal were not made available and prospects for its success appeared bleak.
