The US-led coalition requires no assistance from Russian jets in striking Islamic State (ISIL) positions in Syria, Australia’s Ambassador to Russia Paul Myler said.
“The US-led coalition does not need Russian planes to strike Daesh [ISIL] targets if we found the target,” Myler told RIA Novosti in an interview.
The ambassador added the international coalition saw no reason to share intelligence with Russia on the location of ISIL militants.
“There’s an operation down there with a large number of countries involved, actively targeting Daesh, spending a lot of time and effort getting intelligence on targets and being very careful about our rules of engagement in targeting them, being very careful about the risk of civilian casualties. So, frankly, when we find a good Daesh target, we’ll strike it ourselves,” the diplomat claimed.
At the same time, Myler said the US-led coalition in fighting the Islamic State could possibly have misconceptions on Russia’s presence and its goals in Syria.
“All we’re saying is, on the evidence that we’ve seen to date, it doesn’t look like the targets that are being hit are Daesh [IS] targets, on the basis of our intelligence. Maybe we’re completely wrong, but we’ve been there for a long time, we know basically where people are operating,” Myler told RIA Novosti in an interview.
A US-led coalition has been targeting the positions of ISIL radicals in both Syria and Iraq since September 2014, without achieving any breakthroughs in the fight against ISIL.
Since the beginning of the US-led alliance’s military operations, the joint forces have launched over 7,300 air attacks against jihadists’ positions, but apparently haven’t achieved their objectives – ISIL is still in control of vast areas in both Iraq and Syria, according to the Washington Post.
Russia has criticized the coalition campaign for being carried out without the approval of the Syrian government or the UN Security Council.
On September 30, Russia’s Sukhoi Su-25, Su-24M and Su-34 attack aircraft, with the support of Su-30 jets, commenced precision airstrikes against ISIL targets in Syria, following a request from President Bashar Assad.
The Russian General Staff claim ISIL militants have suffered significant losses, and are changing tactics and going into hiding in remote villages.
According to the Russian military, all targets are chosen based on intelligence collected by Russia, Syria, Iraq and Iran. High-precision weapons are being used during the operation.
