America’s successful mission to kill the leader of the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) was coordinated with Russia, with Moscow being warned in advance to stay away, CNN reported on Thursday.
Citing an anonymous US defense official, the news agency said that Washington told Moscow that it would be operating “in a broad general area of northwest Syria, during a timeframe, and told them to stay out of the area.”
This is not the first time the two nations have cooperated in the country, despite Russia’s belief that the Americans are operating in the country illegally. The Russian operation began in 2015, after Syrian President Bashar Assad requested military aid from the Kremlin.
However, according to international law, the US military presence is an illegal occupation because the American troops entered the country without an invitation from the government.