Russian and American Jets Dangerously Close To Combat As Destabilization Of Syria ContinuesBy Brandon Turbeville Such a potentially disastrous occurrence almost took place yesterday when Russian and American jets came dangerously close to combat over the skies of Syria during the course of a Russian bombing campaign against terrorists in al-Tanf near the Jordanian border. The mid-air confrontation occurred between F/A-18 fighters scrambled by the Pentagon and several SU-34s, Moscows most advanced bombers, Ted Thornhill writes for the Daily Mail. The Russian jets had struck a 200-strong garrison of Syrian rebels fighting the Islamic State in At-Tanf, near the Jordanian border. The Russian military is not denying the bombing raid but it is denying that it targeted Western-backed terrorists (i.e. terrorists publicly claimed by the United States), making the argument that the United States did not make the positions of its proxy terrorists known to the Russian Air Force. Russian Major General Igor Konashenkov, Spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, claimed the air strike was more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) away from the areas the U.S. had designated as being controlled by legitimate opposition forces. The Daily Beast, one of the first mainstream outlets to report the incident, recounts the standoff as follows: The U.S. Navy scrambled F/A-18 fighters to intercept the Russians, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Navy has deployed two aircraft carriers to the region for strikes on ISIS. As the F/A-18s approached the Su-34s, officials with U.S. Central Commandwhich oversees Americas wars in the Middle East and Afghanistanused a special hotline to contact their Russian counterparts directing Russias own intervention in Syria. Washington and Moscow had established the hotline as part of a so-called Safety of Flight Memorandum of Understanding that the two governments signed in October specifically in order to avoid the kind of aerial confrontation that occurred over Syria last week. With the American jets flying close enough to visually identify the Su-34s, the Russians departed the air space over At Tanf. Some time shortly thereafter, the F/A-18s ran low on fuel and left the area in order to link up with an aerial tanker. Thats when the Su-34s reportedly returned to At Tanfand bombed the rebels again. . . . . . The next day, senior U.S. Defense Department officials organized an extraordinary video conference with Russian counterparts to discuss the incident. The meeting included Acting Assistant Secretary for International Security Affairs Elissa Slotkin and U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, a strategic planner on the Pentagons joint staff, plus unspecified Russian Ministry of Defense officials. Department officials expressed strong concerns about the attack on the coalition-supported counter-ISIL forces at the At Tanf garrison, which included forces that are participants in the cessation of hostilities in Syria, and emphasized that those concerns would be addressed through ongoing diplomatic discussions on the cessation of hostilities, Defense Department spokesman Peter Cook explained in a statement. Regarding safety, department officials conveyed that Russias continued strikes at At Tanf, even after U.S. attempts to inform Russian forces through proper channels of on-going coalition air support to the counter-ISIL forces, created safety concerns for U.S. and coalition forces, Cook continued. Department officials requested Russian responses to address those concerns. The Russian military acknowledged that the video conference took place but did not elaborate on the specifics of the discussion. The Russian Defense Ministry did respond publicly to the situation with Igor Konashenkov stating that The Russian Defense Ministry has been offering its American colleagues for the past few months to draw up a unified map that will contain relevant information on the locations of forces active in Syria. However, we have been unable so far to make any significant progress in this issue. This incident now stands as the latest in a series of dangerous standoffs between the United States and Russia, the latter being the only party acting legally in the context of the Syrian crisis. If the United States, NATO, Israel, and the GCC do not soon abandon their plans to destabilize and destroy the Syrian government, such incidents may reach a point where cooler heads no longer prevail or where an itchy trigger finger might ignite much of the world in confrontation. Brandon Turbeville article archive here is the author of seven books, Codex Alimentarius The End of Health Freedom, 7 Real Conspiracies, Five Sense Solutions and Dispatches From a Dissident, volume 1 and volume 2, The Road to Damascus: The Anglo-American Assault on Syria, and The Difference it Makes: 36 Reasons Why Hillary Clinton Should Never Be President. Turbeville has published over 650 articles on a wide variety of subjects including health, economics, government corruption, and civil liberties. Brandon Turbevilles radio show Truth on The Tracks can be found every Monday night 9 pm EST at UCYTV. His website is BrandonTurbeville.com He is available for radio and TV interviews. Please contact activistpost (at) gmail.com. This article may be freely shared in part or in full with author attribution and source link. Russia is in Syria because they were invited into Syria in order to help the nation maintain its sovereignty. Russia and Syria are longtime allies. The Americans on the other hand are nothing more than Imperialist foreign Invaders. America is the new evil empire. Peace from Canada The Americans on the other hand are nothing more than Imperialist foreign Invaders. America is the new evil empire. Too true. Waking up one morning, I would enjoy reading in the Press where i$rael had been destroyed, Americas traitors had been arrested and executed along with the enemy alien fifth columnists. Wonder who will be the first to do this: Isaiah 17:1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap. Damascus is the capital of Syria, and HUGE! And its never in the history of man, been totally destroyed before. Im an American who loves his Country but must acknowledge we were taken over by traitors / enemy alien fifth columnists in November of 1963. 