US says Russian use of Iran base unhelpful but won’t derail Syria talks

The US said Tuesday it was still assessing Russia’s surprise use of an Iranian air base to fly long-range bombers to strike targets in Syria. But while the State Department called the latest developments unhelpful, it said they would not derail ongoing US-Russian negotiations to restore a cease-fire to Syria and get political talks back on track, Al-Monitor reported.

“I think we are still trying to assess what exactly they are doing,” State Department spokesman Mark Toner told journalists at the department press briefing Aug. 16, referring to the Russians’ use of Iran’s Hamedan air base. “It is unfortunate, but not unexpected or surprising.”

“The Russians did notify the coalition,” Col. Christopher Garver, a US military spokesman in Baghdad, told reporters at the Pentagon on Aug. 16. “ informed us they were coming through. … We did know in time … not a lot of time, but it’s enough,” to ensure flight safety over Iraq and Syria.

But beyond the short-notice notification, US officials indicated they had not been given a heads-up about the Russian plans to use the Iranian air base near Hamedan to carry out strikes in Syria, which they suggested was prepared only in the past days. The Russian bombers that took off from the Iranian air base returned to Russia after conducting their mission in Syria, media reports citing US officials said, My Informs reported.