Spotlight: Russian airstrikes destroy IS infrastructure without hitting civilian sites: defense ministry

The Russian military has used high-precision weaponry in strikes against Islamic State (IS) positions in Syria, the Russian Armed Forces General Staff said Wednesday.

"The maximum deviation from a target is five meters," Sputnik cited Col. Gen. Andrei Kartapolov, chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, as saying.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Aerospace Forces have carried out 112 airstrikes, destroying around 40 percent of IS infrastructure without hitting civilian sites.

All of the Russian airstrikes on IS targets in Syria were preceded by preliminary air surveillance missions and were based on intelligence provided by the Syrian military that was verified by Russia, the ministry said.

On Wednesday, Russian warships based in the Caspian Sea have joined the country's air campaign by launching over two dozen cruise missiles on targets of the terrorist group.

"This morning, Caspian Flotilla ships were engaged in the campaign. Four warships launched 26 Calibre cruise missiles against 11 targets," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

He added that all targets located at a distance of 1,500 km were destroyed with no civilian casualties.

Shoigu said the Russian air force has attacked a total of 112 targets, destroying 19 command posts, 12 ammunition depots, 71 armored vehicles as well as factories and workshops producing various explosives, including devices used in car bombs since Russia started its anti-terrorist airstrikes in Syria on Sept. 30.

"The fact that we launched precision weapons from the Caspian Sea to the distance of about 1,500 km and hit all the designated targets shows good work by military industrial plants and good skills of personnel," Putin said.

Russia's airstrikes on the IS targets in Syria have aroused different responses from Western and regional countries.

The United States and NATO have expressed concerns over Russian military actions, saying Russia is mainly striking Syria's anti-government rebels in support of its ally, President Bashar al-Assad.

However, Moscow has denied such allegations, saying that it has no political agenda in Syria and that its bombing of the IS positions is in line with the U.S. priority.

Egypt, the world's biggest Sunni Arab country which boasts the region's largest and best-equipped military, welcomed the Russian campaign as a measure to fight jihadist groups like the IS.

"We believe that the (Russian intervention) will impact the fight against terrorism in Syria and help eliminate it," Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri has said.

While conducting airstrikes against the IS, the United States has been offering support to anti-Assad armed groups, which might explain why its fight against the terrorist group has been ineffective over the year as most of the U.S. assistance has eventually fallen into the hands of the IS, said Dr. Saed Lawendi, expert with the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies.

However, Russia's intervention is more legitimate as it has come upon the request of President Assad, the expert said, pointing out that Russia's airstrikes have achieved more tangible results as they were usually coordinated with the ground troops of the Syrian government.

Pierre Vimont, former secretary-general of the EU diplomatic service and now researcher for the Carnegie Institute, said that Moscow's recent actions and role in international affairs indicated that Russia has returned to the center of the global stage.

Vimont said Western countries need to avoid using force and try to convince Moscow to play a more constructive role in helping maintain global stability.

From that perspective, the ongoing crisis in Syria offers the West an opportunity to cooperate with Russia in a more proactive way, Vimont said. Endi