American and Russian soldiers greeted each other amicably and took pictures together over the weekend on a road in Syria, in an unusual demonstration of friendship between these rival forces, reports AFP on Monday.
The United States and Russia have deployed troops in Syria, a country devastated by the war that has not been contained since 2011 and in which Washington and Moscow each support the opposing camp. The war started in February by Russia against Ukraine further exacerbated the tensions between the two capitals.
But on Saturday morning, an American and a Russian patrol crossed paths in an oil field near the town of al-Qahtaniyah, in Hassake province in northeastern Syria.
American and Russian soldiers stopped the armored vehicles, got out, greeted each other, joked and took pictures. Photo: Profimedia
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It is not the first time that the paths of Russian and American armored vehicles meet in that region under the control of the Kurds. But this time the convoys greeted each other amicably, instead of passing each other without stopping.
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The soldiers, side by side, posed together, smiling and holding the barrels of their weapons pointed at the ground. A Russian and an American burst out laughing during a conversation, and several soldiers even exchanged uniform insignia.
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¡°It is a very rare moment¡±, remarks Samuel Ramani, researcher in international relations at the British University of Oxford.
