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A US defense official said more than 100 US soldiers had begun an unannounced military exercise in southern Syria in response to a possible attack by Russian forces.
The exercise comes after Moscow, on 1 September, warned for the first time that it would enter a restricted area of southern Syria, where US troops are located. Later, on Thursday, she issued her second warning that she would eliminate terrorists in the At Tanf area with "precision strikes," CNN reported.
The launch of an attack with such weapons in a US-protected area would likely lead to an escalation of sporadic violence in the region, US defense officials said.
As part of the military exercise, US troops are involved in the theft of an assault helicopter in the At Tanf garrison of the coalition and in carrying out live fire exercises .
"Our forces will demonstrate their ability to deploy quickly, attack a target with integrated air and ground forces, and perform rapid exfiltrations," said Central Command spokesman Captain William Urban.
Authorities said the military exercises are designed to allow Russian units and the regime in the region to understand the capabilities of the United States, according to the CNN report.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Robertson said Washington would not fight against Moscow, Damascus or other groups supporting the Syrian civil war. However, he warned that he would not hesitate to use force to defend the United States and its coalition partners.
"The United States does not seek to fight the Russians, the Syrian government or groups that could support Syria in the Syrian civil war, but the United States will not hesitate to use the necessary force. and proportionate to defend the United States, coalition forces or partners, as we have clearly demonstrated in the past, "he said.
The unexpected military exercise occurs while the Donald Trump administration has given severe warnings about an assault in Idlib province.
On Monday, Trump took on Twitter to warn Syrian President Bashar al-Assad not to "recklessly attack" the Idlib province. He also warned Iran and Russia not to participate in a "potential human tragedy" for fear of committing a "grave humanitarian mistake".
His response came after Russian planes suspected of carrying out air strikes on rebel-held targets in Idlib province on Tuesday.
On Friday, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said that if Assad, Russia and Iran were to carry out an attack in the province, "the consequences will be disastrous".
"The United States has been very clear with Russia and the wider international community: we consider that any attack on Idlib is a dangerous escalation of the conflict in Syria," Haley said at a meeting of the Security Council. security.
(This article has not been modified by Business Standard staff and is generated automatically from a syndicated feed).
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