U.S.-Russian Syria deal 'immoral,' McCain says
Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY
5 p.m. EDT October 21, 2015
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. speaks on Capitol Hill on Sept. 22, 2015.(Photo: Evan Vucci, AP)
WASHINGTON – Sen. John McCain on Wednesday branded the U.S.-Russian deal to avoid conflict in the sky over Syria "immoral," saying it gives Vladimir Putin a green light to bomb American allies.
The deal, announced Tuesday by the Pentagon and signed by Central Command chief Gen. Lloyd Austin, should not be interpreted as U.S. cooperation with Russia, according to the top civilian official for the Air Force.
"It's a recognition that we don't want accidents in the air," Air Force Sec. Deborah James told the USA TODAY editorial board on Wednesday.
The agreement with Russia includes protocols for flying safely over battlefields in Syria and dedicated frequencies for pilots to communicate. Pentagon officials, including James, say the deal is not an endorsement of Russia's involvement in Syria, nor does it signal cooperation with them.
U.S. and allied warplanes have been striking Islamic State, or ISIL, targets in Syria since Sept. 2014. Russia began beefing up its military presence last month in Syria, an ally, and started bombing missions this month. As much as 90% of the Russian strikes, James said, have been against non-ISIL targets.
The civil war in Syria has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced millions, leading to the refugee crisis in Europe.
McCain, the Arizona Republican who chairs the Armed Services Committee, said in a statement that the pact amounts to a betrayal of moderate forces the U.S. has backed in battling the regime of regime of Bashar Assad. U.S. pilots will give way to Russian attack planes while Iranian-backed Syrian ground forces attack Assad's American-backed opponents, he said.
"This is not only self-defeating and harmful to our national interests; it is immoral," McCain said. "These people put their trust in the United States, believing that we would make good on our promises to help them succeed. Now we are breaking those promises in our haste to give Vladimir Putin clearer skies from which to bomb our partners."
The agreement, James said, was necessary to avoid accidents for U.S. pilots. She said he had no illusions about Russia's interest in Syria.
"What they are doing is hitting the forces that are closest in to the territory that is held by Bashar Assad," James said. "So they are shoring up Bashar Assad. That is what it seems like to me. That's a 'say/do' gap. They say they want to stem the flow of refugees and somehow assist with this refugee crisis. But what they are doing is striking indiscriminately and causing more terror and causing more of a refugee problem."
The agreement also shows that U.S. officials believe that Russian airstrikes to support the portion of Syria that Assad still holds won't stop soon, said Nicholas Heras, a researcher with the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security.
"The signal it sends is that the United States recognizes that the number one priority of the Russian airstrikes, to support the continuation of Assad's state-let, is a fact on the ground that cannot be reversed," Heras said.
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