NO COOPERATION WITH RUSSIAN FORCES ON THE GROUND AND THE USA AIRFORCE ATTACKING IS IN SYRIA–AS THE SECRETAY OF STATE JOHN KERRY HAVE FROZEN COMMUNICATION AFTER THE CRIMEA AND THE INVASION OF UKRAINE BY THE PUTIN–THE POSSIBLE OF DECONFLICTION YET TO BE ESTABLISHED FROM MAYBE AN ERRANT AIR STRIKE BETWEEN THE TWO FORCES–SO TWO MAJOR ARMIES ATTACKING THE SAME MUSLIM ENEMY FIGHTING BLIND

“Coalition forces are focused on conducting counter-ISIL operations, and so to my knowledge there is no military-to-military contact at this point,” Air Force Col. Pat Ryder, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, told reporters Friday morning.

“We’re keeping an eye on the Russian situation there, but right now again there’s really no deconfliction to do,” Ryder said, answering a question about how U.S. and anti-ISIS coalition forces and the Russian military are keeping out of each other’s way in Syria. “I think what you’re getting at is: [deconfliction] in the event there’s some type of Russian military or air activity, but again, I’m not going to speculate or talk about hypotheticals. Certainly, we have very professional air forces, and the coalition is going to ensure the safety of those forces where we operate.”

Related: NATO Caught ‘Surprised’ By Russia’s Move Into Syria

But Russia’s military presence in Syria, at least, is no longer hypothetical. Just hours before Ryder’s press briefing, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov confirmed that Moscow had sent troops and equipment to help its longtime client, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, fight ISIS. Lavrov declined to confirm a Reuters report that the Russian troops had seen combat, but he did warn the U.S. about a growing risk of “unintended incidents” if the countries’ militaries did not cooperate in Syria.

When Ryder was asked specifically about deconfliction between coalition and Russian forces, the Pentagon spokesman referred the question to the State Department. But State Department spokesman John Kirby tossed it right back: “You have to talk to DOD about air coordination over the skies of Syria. That is not a State Department function.”

Kirby did note that the Pentagon has “routine military-to-military exchanges and dialogue with Russia, just as a matter of course.”

And he said that while the U.S. is hardly coordinating the air campaign with Assad or his government, it is using back channels, such as the Syrian representative to the U.N., to notify Damascus of imminent actions.

http://www.defenseone.com/threats/2015/09/us-and-russian-forces-syria/120860/