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Russia’s airstrikes in Syria no violation of sovereignty: Syrian FM

Russia’s raids in Syria do not violate the Arab country’s sovereignty, Syria's foreign minister says.

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Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem

Russia’s anti-terror campaign in Syria is not in violation of Syria’s sovereignty as it is being conducted in coordination with the Damascus government, the Syrian Foreign Minister says.

"Russia acted strictly under the United Nations Charter and international laws. It came to Syria at the request of its government," Walid al-Muallem said on Monday.

"This step is not infringing upon Syria’s independence, and Russia is acting within the framework of Syria’s sovereignty," he added.

Moscow began its military campaign against terrorists in Syria on September 30 upon a request from the Damascus government, shortly after the upper house of the Russian parliament gave President Vladimir Putin the mandate to use military force in Syria.

On October 2, Putin said one of the key objectives of Moscow’s air campaign in Syria is to preserve the Arab country’s territorial integrity.

A frame grab taken from footage released by Russia's Defense Ministry on October 5, 2015, shows a Russian fighter jet taxiing on the tarmac of Heymim airbase in Syria. 

Muallem also noted that Moscow’s airstrikes in Syria are criticized by "those countries that were behind sparking the conflict in Syria, namely the United States, France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar."

The US, Britain, France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey released a joint statement on Friday, criticizing the Russian airstrikes that they said had not targeted Daesh positions.

Russia, however, has dismissed the allegations against its military offensive, saying its airstrikes are targeting all terrorist groups, including Daesh and al-Qaeda-linked militants.

Echoing Russia’s remarks, the Syrian minister also stressed that all terrorist groups operating in Syria, including Daesh, the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham, are targeted by the raids.

In a late Monday statement, the Russian Defense Ministry said its fighter jets had carried out strikes on 10 Daesh facilities in Syria earlier in the day.