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Conflict in Syria

No secret in Russian-Syrian military technical cooperation — Russian Foreign Ministry

Cooperation with Damascus in its fight against the threat of terrorism is Russia's official position

© AP Photo/Muzaffar Salman

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Russia continues military-technical cooperation with Syria — Kremlin spokesman

MOSCOW, September 3. /TASS/. Media reports about Russian military planes in Syria have already been disavowed by Russia’s Defense Ministry and presidential administration, Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

"I saw reports about Russian planes on the Syrian territory. I also saw comments on this matter by Russia’s Defense Ministry and presidential administration that disavowed this information. There is nothing to add here," Zakharova said.

"Sensational statements are often made about military-technical cooperation between Russia and Syria - that it grows or decreases," she said. "We see them in different parts of the world. And it is always made to sound sensational. We say that we never tried to make a secret out of this. This is our consistent position connected with assisting official Damascus in its fight against the terrorism threat," the diplomat stressed.

Zakharova also noted that Russia "regularly raises on platforms of international organizations" issues of protecting Christians in Syria. "This is one of the most important topics in the context of the Syrian settlement," she stressed.

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Russia continues military-technical cooperation with Syria in the routine mode, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier on Thursday.

"Russia maintains [military-technical] cooperation with Syria and supports it. This is a consistent process," Peskov said answering a journalist’s question on whether the format of military-technical cooperation between the two countries has changed.

On Wednesday, Peskov refuted media reports about possible participation of Russian Armed Forces in airstrikes against the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization. "You should not believe these media reports," Peskov told journalists.

Several foreign media outlets reported earlier that Russian aviation may take part in carrying out airstrikes against IS positions in Syria. Reports said equipment has already been transferred to carry out the operation.

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Foreign policy Russian Foreign Ministry Syria

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