ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—The Syrian army in a major offensive backed by Russian airstrikes, reached the border of Raqqa province to the west of the Islamic State’s de facto capital city on Saturday. The Syrian army advanced from eastern Hama province, reported the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). “[R]egime forces are now trying to advance and reach the Euphrates Lake [Lake Assad] and the road of Al-Raqqah – Aleppo,” stated SOHR. The army is presently dozens of kilometres from al-Taqba on the southern shore of Lake Assad. Cutting off the road between Raqqa and Aleppo would isolate ISIS militants in Aleppo from their stronghold east of the Euphrates. In addition to receiving Russian air support, regular Syrian troops were joined on the ground by militias trained by Russia, Rami Abdel Rahman, SOHR director, told AFP. This advance by the Syrian army from the west comes as US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) close in on Raqqa from the north. The SDF liberated at least nine villages north of Raqqa earlier this week. The SDF, which are mainly Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) but also include Arab fighters, are supported by US special forces on the ground and backed by coalition air power. The US-backed SDF offensive from the north and the Russian-backed offensive from the west hints at cooperation between the two powers, SOHR believes. “It seems there has been an undeclared coordination between Washington and Moscow,” Rahman said. Russia has suggested that the two nations should cooperate in Syria but the US has publicly brushed aside Moscow’s proposal. “We do not collaborate or coordinate with the Russians on any operations in Syria,” Navy Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters on May 20. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry did discuss Syria in a telephone call Saturday morning, the Russian ministry confirmed, though the details of what was discussed were not given. This is the first time Syrian troops have entered Raqqa province since they were ousted by ISIS in August 2014. At least 26 ISIS militants and nine regime troops were killed in the offensive, the SOHR reported.
