Russia launched airstrikes in Syria on Wednesday, catching U.S. and Western officials off guard and drawing new condemnation as evidence suggested Moscow wasn't targeting extremist group Islamic State, but rather other opponents of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
One of the airstrikes hit an area primarily held by rebels backed by the Central Intelligence Agency and allied spy services, U.S. officials said, catapulting the Syrian crisis to a new level of danger and uncertainty. Moscow's entry means the world's most powerful militaries--including the U.S., Britain and France--now are flying uncoordinated combat missions, heightening the risk of conflict in the skies over Syria.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Russia's approach to the Syrian war--defending Mr. Assad while ostensibly targeting extremists--was tantamount to "pouring gasoline on the fire."
"I have been dealing with them for a long time. And this is not the kind of behavior that we should expect professionally from the Russian military," Mr. Carter said at a Pentagon news conference.
