A Russian military plane was just shot down over the coast of Syria. Fifteen Russians were killed. The Russian I L 20 turboprop plane was conducting electronic reconnaissance when it suddenly came under attack by what was called at the time quote "enemy missiles."
Now before everyone starts freaking out… we neither did this nor are we being blamed for it. I think you can imagine the worldwide freak out that would be ensuing right now had this been an accident between the U.S. and Russia. Just imagine if they would have inadvertently shot down one of our planes and killed fifteen of our boys. We'd be calling for blood.
But we had absolutely nothing to do with this and that's not in dispute. So where did these, as the Russians described it, "enemy missiles" come from? It turns out Russia's plane was actually shot down by their ally… the Assad Regime. A Syrian S-200 battery hit the plane as it was returning to a military base used by the Russians in Northern Syria.
But we're not completely out of the woods here, and this is where it gets both interesting and maybe even a little scary. At the same time the Syrian missiles were taking out Russia's plane, four Israeli F-16 fighter jets were striking targets near the Russian base in Northern Syria. Russia is livid. They're calling Israel's actions a quote "deliberate and hostile provocation." The implication here is that the Israeli jets were masking their position behind the Russian plane, in effect using it as cover to commence their bombing run.
The downing of this plane is a tragic accident, but it also shows how dangerously close the world is to a major confrontation.
But as the Russians are accusing Israel of using one of its planes as cover, Iran is doing the exact same thing with their forces near Russian military bases. Russian assets are among some of the most heavily protected areas in Syria. They're the hardest to penetrate. Iranian forces from the Iranian Republican Guard Corps and Hezbollah, are basing their troops - with Russia's approval - near Russian bases. It's the perfect protection and security guarantee for Iran to operate inside Syria… directly on Israel's border.
The downing of this plane is a tragic accident, but it also shows how dangerously close the world is to a major confrontation. The situation in Syria is not sustainable. Iran wants control over Syria and Russia is helping them do it. Israel knows this and can not let that happen. If this course is maintained, this incident surely won't be the last. If Russia begins actively targeting Israeli jets from striking Hezbollah and Iranian forces, how long do you think Israel will allow that? How long will we allow that? This situation is a powder keg. Anything can set it off.
Morningstar via Investopedia