WASHINGTON, September 15. /TASS/. The United States and its allies do not coordinate their steps with Russia while conducting an operation against the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria and Iraq, Captain Nikolaj Thide, a representative from the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, told TASS.
Thide said that the Combined Joint Task Force engaged in the Inherent Resolve operation was not coordinating its combat activities with any of Russian structures.
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Earlier, Washington said the United States would welcome Russia’s constructive contribution to the fight against the Islamic State but the US Administration categorically opposes any Russian assistance to Damascus.
On Sunday Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in a weekly review programme on Russia's First Channel that defence and technology cooperation with Syria was bound to have specialists sent over from Russia for training Syrian personnel use the supplied weapons,
"As for our approaches, they are absolutely transparent," Lavrov said. "Over all these years, from the very beginning of the Arab Spring, from the time it degraded into development of terrorists and extremists, who began overthrowing regimes in various countries and began being supported by those who also shared negative attitudes to the former leaders, we have been declaring we shall help the Syrian authorities, like we have been assisting Iraq and governments of other countries, which are facing the terrorist threat."
"These are the objectives of our military-technical cooperation," he said.
On Monday the spokesman for the US Department of State, John Kirby, said that the participation in the operation against the IS "can’t include direct support to the Assad regime."