On 16 April, Russian troops and Iranian-backed militias clashed in the northwest Syrian city of Aleppo.
A Russian military source acknowledged the death of eleven people, including two children and three women, whilst eleven others are believed to have been injured in the violence. Clashes reportedly broke out near a vegetable market in the Khaldiya neighborhood of the city, which quickly escalated to the use of heavy weaponry. Reports indicated that at one point ground-to-air missiles were fired on nearby areas within the city, resulting in the civilian casualties.
The strain on relations between Russian and Iranian personnel in Syria have been escalating in recent months. Issues such as territorial authority and relations with other power players in the country, such as Turkey, have all brought friction to the interaction Iranian and Russian troops have on a daily basis in Syria.
This phenomenon has no doubt only increased Moscow’s concerns over their ability to control Iran, and reminds the observer just how nervous Putin has been (for at least the better part of a year) about Tehran’s presence in the country. Last summer, U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton claimed that Russia was growing increasingly anxious to expel Iran from the country. “Certainly the objective of the United States, of Israel […] President Putin said it was Russia’s objective to get Iranian forces, Iranian militias, Iranian surrogates out of the offensive operations they’re in, in both Syria and Iraq and frankly, to end Iran’s support for Hezbollah,” Bolton said. In fact, from all the nations harboring a fear of Iranian entrenchment in Syria, Russia is the likely one that has to face the reality of Iran’s expansion the most.
Of course the growing animosity between Tehran and Moscow will not be good for Iran’s position in Syria. With both the U.S. and Israel actively seeking ways to dislodge the Ayotolahs and their troops from the country, losing whatever Russian support they have left will only further isolate the Islamic Republic.