On Sunday, a US-led coalition downed a Syrian Su-22 aircraft, which was on a mission to target Daesh (banned in Russia) terror organization near Raqqa. The coalition claimed the move was aimed at preventing Syrian forces from attacking Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) positions advancing on Daesh stronghold. The Russian Defense Ministry responded by halting its cooperation with the United States stipulated by the Memorandum of Understanding on flight safety on Syrian airspace.
"To my mind, the Russian Defense Ministry’s actions, taken earlier in the day, will play the role of a sort of signal and a sort of an action aimed at preventing such incidents, as we understand that in this case, the United States will understand that these types of actions may be taken with regard to its armed forces," Shvytkin said, adding the Washington should learn that its actions would not go unpunished.
The United States and Russia signed a MOU on the Prevention of Flight Safety Incidents in Syrian airspace in October 2015. The agreement was already suspended once this year, after US conducted missile strikes on the Syrian Ash Sha'irat military airfield in the country's Homs province in April.
