Stephen Lendman

Washington uses foreign airbases to terror-bomb Syrian hospitals, infrastructure and government targets, slaughtering defenseless civilians at the same time - on the phony pretext of combating ISIS it supports.

Russia heroically is involved in legitimately combating terrorism - from aerial missions conducted from Syrian territory and now from Iran in lieu of much longer distance flights from Russian territory. A previous article discussed it.

Deputy State Department spokesman Mark Toner falsely suggested Russian aerial operations from Iran’s Hamadan airbase perhaps violated UN Resolution 2231.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman General Igor Konashenkov blasted the notion, saying “(i)t is against our rules to give advice to the US Department of State.”

“But one finds it really hard to refrain from a recommendation to look into whether Department of State officials follow any logic and know fundamental international legal documents well enough.”

“Such testing should begin with the knowledge of the UN Security Council’s Resolution 2331, which requires getting UN Security Council’s consent to the sale, handover and use of combat planes inside Iran.”

It places no restrictions on Russian or any other foreign aircraft launching combat missions against US-supported terrorists in Syria.

It’s a sovereign state. Defending it on request from its legitimate government is a noble act. US terror-bombing its territory is a high crime against peace.

At the same time, closer Russian military ties with Iran provides it with greater protection against imperial attacks. Longstanding US plans call for regime change in both countries.

Sergey Lavrov blasted the notion of Moscow violating Security Council Resolution 2231 - or any other one, in contrast to repeated US violations with impunity.

Russia is legally within its right to use Iranian territory and airspace to launch attacks against US-supported terrorists in Syria - authorized by its government.

Claims otherwise reflect longstanding Russia bashing. Putin responsibly challenging America’s imperial project deserves universal support.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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