Russia will not ask the Syrian regime to halt air raids on the war-ravaged city of Aleppo, as it believes they are helping to combat jihadist groups, Moscow’s foreign ministry said today.
Aleppo, capital of the northern province of the same name, is a key battleground and of vital strategic significance to both sides in the Syrian civil war.
The past week has seen a spike in fighting which has left more than 200 dead, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Some 250 civilians have been killed in raids since they began on April 22 or else been caught in army and rebel crossfire, according to the Observatory.
US officials have accused Moscow of backing the attacks by a Damascus regime which Russia supports as the Syrian government gears up for an expected assault on Aleppo.
Secretary of State John Kerry said the strike matched a pattern of Syrian government attacks targeting health workers.
The Russian army responded by denying it was backing the regime strikes and indicated that no Russian war planes have flown over the city in recent days.