October 25, 2016 (UATODAY) One of Israel's
leading media experts on military and defense issues Amos Harel in his article
for Haaretz analyzed Putin's gains and losses in Middle East.
Over the past few
weeks, Russia has finished beefing up its aerial defenses in northern Syria. The
Washington Post, after interviewing American experts, published a map last week
showing the estimated radius of coverage of Russia's S-300 and S-400 systems,
which are bolstered by anti-aircraft missiles on ships in the port of Tartus.
The 380-kilometer radius covers Lebanon, much of Turkey and Jordan, the eastern
Mediterranean until out beyond Cyprus, a bit of Iraq, and Israel all the way to
the northern Negev.
The paper said the Pentagon isn't sure whether,
if necessary, it could penetrate these aerial defense systems, since the
question hasn't yet arisen. Presumably, America has electronic warfare systems
capable of disrupting even dense anti-aircraft coverage. But the Post said
Russia's coverage limits Washington's ability not only to launch air strikes on
Syrian military targets, but also to create no-fly zones to protect civilians,
an idea both U.S. presidential candidates say they support.
Russia's beefed-up deployment also affects
Israel, which, according to foreign media reports, has launched numerous air
strikes on arms convoys from Syria to Hezbollah in recent years. Based on the
Washington Post's map, an Israeli plane couldn't take off from Tel Nof airbase
without being tagged by Russian radar.
The limitations aren't just military, but also
diplomatic. Israel and Russia have set up a mechanism to prevent clashes in
Syrian airspace, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has met with Russian
President Vladimir Putin four times over the last year to further that purpose.
Having no other choice, Netanyahu has nurtured
his Russian romance. But in reality, this romance is about as romantic as
Donald Trump's groping of women. It's a romance to which Israel was forced to
consent once the Russian bear decided to move into its backyard.
Russia apparently reinforced its aerial
defenses in response to American condemnations of its bombing of Aleppo, and
due to concern, apparently unwarranted, that the Obama administration might
actually take military action against Syrian President Bashar Assad. Though
Russia's economy is crumbling, Putin keeps pushing the envelope, including with
frequent hints about the danger of nuclear war, attempts to sabotage the U.S.
presidential election and surprising moves in the Mideast, like this month's
announcement that Russia and Egypt will hold a joint military exercise. The full
article is available at
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