Russia says the US military intervention in Syria is illegal, ultimatelyaimed at toppling the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Foreign MinisterSergei Lavrov hastoldSwedish dailyDagens Nyheter that the intervention without the authorization of the "legitimate" Syrianauthorities was a "big mistake."
"I've told our American partners repeatedly that this is a big mistake. Just likethey received approval fromthe Iraqi government, they should have obtained approval fromDamascus or come tothe UN Security Council," he said.
"The fact that they went there illegally reflects, firstly, the arrogant stance that Syrian President Assad heads an illegitimate regime," Lavrovsaid in remarks published on Thursday.
"And, secondly, inmy opinion, the desire tokeep their hands untied and be able touse the coalition toattack not only terrorist positions, butperhaps also the regime's forces later onin order tooverthrow it, asit happened inLibya."
Lavrov saidRussia is "the only country engaged inanti-terrorism activities inSyria legally."
Russian DeputyForeign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also said Friday that the deployment of USspecialforces to Syria without coordination with Damascus violatesSyria's sovereignty.
Since September 2014, the US and some of its allies have been carrying out airstrikes against purported Daesh positions inside Syria.
The Syrian government has charged that the airstrikes had targeted the country's infrastructure in many instances anddone little to stop theadvances of terrorists.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="550"]
A picture taken on April 28, 2016, shows a general view of the damaged al-Quds hospital building (R) in neighborhood of Sukkari in the northern city of Aleppo. AFP[/caption]US 'aggression'
On Thursday, Damascusdenouncedthe arrivalof 150 US special forcesin Syria,calling it a blatant violation of the country'ssovereignty and an aggression.
A statement issued by the Foreign Ministry saidthe troopsarrived inthe town of Rumeilan in Syria's predominantly Kurdish province of Hassakeh in the north.
President Barack Obama announced this week the deployment of 250 moretroops to Syria, which would bringthe number of US special forces in the war-torn country to 300.
The Syrian statement said the deploymentof thetroops is a "rejected and illegitimate intervention that was done without the Syrian government's consent."
Russia, meanwhile, saidit wants detailed information about theUS plan, including the precise purpose of thedeployment.
We would like to comprehend what this is all about; whether this is a one-time action, who these people are and where they will be stationed, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in Moscow.
"What they are dispatched there for and whether this is part of a programor a plan,"she added.
AUS State Department spokesman said earlier in the week that Obamas promise not to put US boots on the ground in Syria wasnever a promise.
'Don't attack Nusra affiliates'
The US also appears to have rejected a Russian request forthe UN to blacklist amajor militant group, which has attended UN-brokered Syria peace talks in Geneva.
Russias Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said Wednesday he had asked the UN to addJaysh al-Islam and Ahrar al-Shamto a blacklist that includes Daesh and al-Qaeda.
The US admits that the two groups are fighting alongside and are intermingled with al-Qaedas Nusra Front, but has rejectedthe Russian request to classify them asterrorist.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner madeit clear that the "US wants Russia &#Syrianot to target terror grps AhrarSham & Jaish al-Islam even though they fight alongside Nusra"pic.twitter.com/yUG9RF1lhg.
Washington's acknowledgement of the groups intermingling with Nusra Front followsPentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren's claim last weekin a press briefing that its primarily al-Nusra who holds Aleppo.
The US State Department has also urgeda cessation of hostilities against militant forces holding Aleppo while the Pentagon has said it is primarilyNusra Front that is in charge of Syria's second largest city.
The Syrian army is pushing to drive out terrorists from Aleppo with the Russian air support but the deaths of civilians in a recentairstrike in the city have become a lightening rod for criticism.
On Thursday, Damascus and Moscow vehemently denied accusations from the opposition that they carried out the strike on the al-Qudos hospital, in which nearly 30 people were killed.
The USState Department, however, saidSyria's government was solely responsible for theairstrike on thehospital in Aleppo.
US officials' call for a halt on attacks in Aleppo come afterState Department spokesman Toner saidin a February 22press briefingthatgroups who fight alongside Nusra Front or other terrorist groups in Syria would be legitimate military targets.
"We...have been very clear in saying that al-Nusrah and Daesh are not part of any kind of ceasefire or any kind of negotiated cessation of hostilities," he said.
Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. According to a February report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the crisis in the Arab country has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people so far.
The Takfiri militants, who were initially trained by the CIA in Jordan in 2012 to destabilize the Syrian government, now control large parts of Iraq and Syria.
By Press TV
