Washington Russia on Thursday accused the United States of a tense confrontation in Russia Syria in which Russian military vehicles and helicopters bypassed U.S. armored vehicles, injuring U.S. troops. The White House National Security Council (NSC) said in a statement that a Russian car crashed into a U.S. mine-resistant field vehicle, “causing injuries to the car’s crew.”
A U.S. official told CBS News’ senior national defense correspondent David Martin that Russian troops were operating in a designated “security zone” that they had agreed to stay out of.
There have been many encounters between Russian and U.S. troops on the ground in Syria and some have been exciting, but the official told Martin that the incident earlier this week was the first time U.S. troops were wounded in such a confrontation. Their injuries were minor, but the official called the actions of the Russian troops “reckless.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense has released a statement saying it had warned the US-led anti-ISIS coalition in advance that a column of its military police would go through.
“Despite this, in violation of existing agreements, US troops sought to block the Russian patrol,” it said, adding that Russian military police were taking “necessary measures” to end the incident and carry out their mission.
Russian General Staff chief Valery Gerasimov gave a “full explanation” in a phone call Wednesday with General Mark Milley, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Moscow said.
The U.S. military declined to comment on the call, acknowledging that it had “agreed to keep the details of their conversation private.”
Videos shared on Twitter, apparently filmed by bystanders and the Russians themselves, appear to show Russian troopers and attack helicopters trying to box the American cars in and then force them out of the area, near Dayrick.
Vehicles seem to collide, and at one point one of the helicopters hovers very low over the stopped Americans, blowing them with propeller wash.
National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said the American vehicles were a security patrol of the anti-ISIS coalition. He said the patrol left the area to de-escalate the situation.
“Unsafe and unprofessional actions such as these represent a violation of de-conflict protocols, committed to the United States and Russia in December 2019,” Ullyot said.
“The coalition and the United States do not seek escalation with national military forces, but American troops always retain the inherent right and obligation to defend themselves against hostile acts.”
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