NATO Tells Putin Syria Bombing Is Hindering West's Peace Effort
- Shift in `strategic balance' in region, Stoltenberg says
- Turkey said as many as 70,000 Syrians are fleeing Aleppo
Wreckage following a reported Russian airstrike in Aleppo, Syria, on Feb. 4, 2016.
Photographer: Ibrahim Ebu Leys/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Russia’s bombing of Syria is hampering the West’s efforts to bring an end to the five-year civil war that’s sent hundreds of thousands of refugees to Europe and aided the advance of Islamic State, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.
“Intense Russian air strikes, mainly targeting opposition groups in Syria, are undermining the efforts to find a political solution to the conflict,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Amsterdam on Friday. He called for Russia to start a “calm de-escalation” of its actions.