22 Feb 2020; MEMO: Russian daily newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta reported that Turkey has prevented four Russian military aircrafts, including two bombers, from crossing its airspace to Syria.
Field sources knowledgeable about the Russian Hmeimim Air Base, revealed on Thursday that the Russian forces brought in military reinforcements from the storage facilities of the Russian army to the airbase, in an indication that battles may intensify in north-western Syria.
The sources revealed to Al-Quds Al-Arabi the arrival of heavy shipments of modern Russian tanks and missile launchers, heavy artillery and anti-armour missiles, in addition to shipments of bombs and missiles used by Russian strategic bombers and fighters, as well as the bombs used by Sukhoi aircraft of various categories.
Russian reinforcements also included tanks, troop carriers and mechanisms used to lift dirt berms and build fortifications, as well as defensive barriers.
The measures undertaken by the Russian forces came as tension escalates and rifts deepens between Ankara and Moscow over the developments in Idlib and the countryside of Aleppo, northern Syria, especially following the failure of technical and political negotiations between Russian officials and their Turkish counterparts.
