Russia backs Aleppo assault to strong-arm US: analysts
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By Sammy Ketz with Marina Lapenkova in Moscow (AFP) 9 mins ago in World
Russia has decided to throw its military might behind the Syrian regime's drive to recapture divided Aleppo in a bid to strong-arm Washington into accepting Moscow's demands, analysts say.
After a short-lived truce collapsed, Russian warplanes have joined Syrian aerial and artillery bombardment of the rebel-held east of the city, pounding it with unprecedented ferocity.
"Negotiations with the Americans were just a smokescreen in order to buy time and prepare for the next phase of military operations," said Thomas Pierret, a Syria expert at the University of Edinburgh.
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