Could the ongoing civil war in Syria evolve into a greater conflict, with Russia, Iran, and the United States coming to blows? With so many powers with so many boots on the ground, the risks of conflict are immense. Turns out, the United States has actually already engaged with and killed Russian soldiers, albeit of the mercenary type.
US Army Brigadier General Jonathan Braga recently talked with NBC and acknowledged that numerous Russian mercenaries were killed after they and Assad-regime soldiers launched a surprise attack on American allies. The United States responded with force, killing as many as 200 combatants, many of whom were apparently Russian. The attack occurred on February 7, 2018 in eastern Syria. No Americans were killed.
General Braga has warned that such skirmishes could escalate into an all-out war between the United States and Russia, however. While the Russians were apparently mercenaries working for a merc firm called Wagner, many security analysts believe that the firm is all but controlled by the Kremlin. During and after the battle, American forces quickly contacted their Russian counterparts, who denied that the attacking forces were under their command.
General Braga was asked directly by NBC if he was worried about a “real war.” Turns out, the general very much was and is, stating, “Absolutely concerned and that’s why, again, I had a professional dialogue with our [Russian] counterparts throughout the night.”
Outside of Braga, however, American military officials have generally downplayed the situation. Secretary of Defense James Mattis, for example, has largely blown the incident off. Of course, this could be simple posturing, and as the secretary of defense, it’s Mattis’ job to put on a cool, collected front.
However, there are plenty of reasons to worry. Many hoped that the Trump administration would be able to smooth over relations with the Kremlin. While the war of words between the Trump and Putin regimes has toned down compared to the Obama administration, several serious developments have rattled the intelligence community.
The biggest headline in recent weeks has been the assassination of a former Russian spy in London. However, that development may be small peas in the grand scheme of things. Putin continues to tighten his grip over the nation. As of now, it appears that Putin is all but set to rule Russia for life.
And Putin is going to have new toys to play with as well, having just unveiled six advanced weapons. Several were new and unknown to the public. Speaking in Moscow, Putin warned that “no one has listened to us. You listen to us now.” The weapons include a new nuclear engine-powered cruise missile, a nuclear-tipped hypersonic boost delivery vehicle, an underwater nuclear delivery vehicle, an air-launched hypersonic missile, and even laser weapons.
For now, we’ll have to hope that Putin is never given reason to use any of his new “toys.” Yet with American and Russian troops on the ground in Syria and on different sides of the battlefield, the risk of war certainly can’t be overlooked. Should American or Russian troops be killed by their counterparts, retaliatory attacks could quickly spiral out of control.
