The U.S. has seen a “significant spike” in aggressive Russian military overflights in Syria this month, the commander said.



CNN

The U.S. has seen a “significant spike” in aggressive overflights by the Russian military in Syria this month, the commander of U.S. Central Command said Thursday, two days after Russian jets pursued and faced American drone over the Black Sea.

Gene. Eric Kurilla told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that Russian stormtroopers are flying over US bases loaded with weapons “in an attempt to cause a provocation.” He described Russian flights as “not what we expect from a professional air force”.

Asked if aggressive overflights were new, Kurilla replied: “It’s not new, but we’ve seen a significant spike since around March 1 in Syria.”

“However, we have seen an increase in unprofessional and unsafe behavior in recent times. Russian Air Force in the region,” he said.

The US has about 900 troops in Syria at two different bases as part of the ongoing campaign to defeat ISIS. The US and Russia have a line of deconflict between the two militaries to ensure operations do not miscalculate or unintentionally escalate.

Kurilla said Russia’s actions were an attempt to “revise the protocols for resolving conflicts that they violate every day.”

On Wednesday, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said at a press conference that the United States is observing “a system of aggressive, risky and unsafe actions by Russian pilots in international airspace.”

Speaking alongside Austin, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said that the US is analyzing the pattern of behavior “to determine exactly what the way forward is.”

Milley said the aggressive operations are not only targeting the US, but also the UK and other countries.