The Russian Ministry of Defense commented on the transfer of the letter by the US military through confidential channels. The head of the RF Armed Forces General Staff Valery Gerasimov really sent an appeal to Syria’s General of the US Marine Corps Joseph Dunford.
Thus, the Russian Defense Ministry reacted to the actions of the Pentagon, which previously promulgated closed correspondence.
Gerasimov informed Dunford about measures taken by Moscow and Damascus to stabilize the situation in Syria. He said that the Russian authorities are ready to work out the issue of the safe return of refugees from the camp “Rukban” in the territory of the area of El Tanf, in which the US military base is located. Recall that in the area of El Tanf, the US military is training the militants of the Syrian opposition. The US is on this territory illegally, without the permission of the official Damascus.
In addition, the letter made a proposal for coordination on issues that related to humanitarian problems and the establishment of a peaceful life throughout Syria, as well as neutralizing attempts by terrorists to attract refugees to their ranks.
The Defense Ministry expressed disappointment that the US side made public “the content of contacts without preliminary agreement of the parties.” Earlier, Reuters reported that the Russian authorities sent a “secret document” to the US military command.
According to military expert Boris Rozhin, the publication of the Russian letter is aimed at frustrating any positive changes in the settlement of the Syrian crisis. He noted that the letter, which dealt with assistance to Syrian refugees, gave Washington a chance to save face, but the United States did not take advantage of this opportunity.
“Of course, the discharge of this letter is intended to prevent any progress in US-Russian relations in the Syrian direction. Any agreement with the Kremlin is now hitting Trump, so information about behind-the-scenes negotiations will have implications for US domestic policy, “Rozhin writes in his blog.