21 Dec 2019; MEMO: Russia has established a military observation point in Syria’s northeastern Al-Hasakah province, according to local sources, Anadolu Agency reports.
Some 70 to 80 Russian military police officers with armored vehicles settled in a farm at the northern entrance of Tal Tamr town.
The town which is occupied by the YPG is located on the strategic M4 highway, southeast of the Turkey-led Peace Spring operation’s area.
Russian forces also set up an observation point for the highway crossings in the town.
There are also a small number of Bashar al-Assad regime forces in the town.
Russian troops carried out several patrols in the surrounding villages for about a month before settling in its current location.
With the start of Peace Spring, US forces withdrew from areas near the operation area and Russian troops moved into some of the abandoned houses.
Turkey on 9 October launched Operation Peace Spring to eliminate Kurdish militias from northern Syria east of the Euphrates River
in order to secure Turkey’s borders, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees, and ensure Syria’s territorial integrity.
Ankara wants the YPG to withdraw from the region so a safe zone can be created to pave the way for the safe return of two million refugees.
