Anna Borshchevskaya, The Hill: Some Russian commentators are holding Putin and Assad responsible for plane downing
On Sept. 17, Syrian S-200 battery accidentally shot down a Russian Ilyushin Il-20 (IL-20) reconnaissance plane, killing all 15 Russian service members onboard. Moscow holds Israel responsible, claiming that Israel put the Russian aircraft in a line of fire even if ultimately these events were a “series of tragic mistakes,” as Russian President Vladimir Putin was quick to note. Israel holds the Assad regime responsible. According to an IDF statement, Syrian anti-aircraft batteries "fired indiscriminately and from what we understand did not bother to ensure no Russian planes were in the air."
Russian-Syrian cooperation on a tactical level was always wrought with operational problems, and it’s likely that the two sides had difficulties de-conflicting in this particular incident. Nor is it surprising that to save face, the Russian government blamed someone else for its own incompetence, and that of its ally.
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WNU Editor: I also hold the view that the Kremlin's Syrian policy is not only indirectly responsible for the plane downing, but also responsible for the current quagmire that Russia now finds itself in Syria.
