US: Russia risks attacks by extremists

Russia, and/or its interests, could be at risk from extremist attacks as a result of its support for the Syrian regime, the US State Department has warned.

John Kirby, a spokesman, told reporters,

he consequences are that the civil war will continue in Syria, that extremist groups will continue to exploit the vacuums that are there in Syria, to expand their operations, which will include — no question — attacks against Russian interests, perhaps even Russian cities

Today, in a phone call Kerry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that the US would pause all discussions with Russia on Syria unless the Kremlin backed away from the Syrian regimes siege of Aleppo.

Kirby went on,

Russia will continue to send troops home in body bags, and they will continue to lose resources, even perhaps more aircraft … It would be irresponsible for this government not to think about those things and not to try to work through the calculus on other options that are outside diplomacy … It’s going to mean, again, more violence, more war, and you can expect casualties on both sides of this

 

Today regime forces stepped up an already unprecedented campaign against Aleppo with the bombing of two hospitals.