Saudi Arabia proposes to arm Syrian rebels with air defense systems to counter Bashar troops 12602161

Defence & Security News - Saudi Arabia
 
Saudi Arabia proposes to arm Syrian rebels with air defense systems to counter Bashar troops.
Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister has said Syrian rebels should be armed with surface-to-air missiles to “change the balance of power” against Bashar al-Assad. Saudi Arabia has also offer to send ground troops to fight ISIS members in Syria, but did not specify whether they would directly battle the regime.
     
     
"We believe that introducing surface-to-air missiles in Syria is going to change the balance of power on the ground. It will allow the moderate opposition to be able to neutralize the helicopters and aircraft that are dropping chemicals and have been carpet-bombing them, just like surface-to-air missiles in Afghanistan were able to change the balance of power there. ", said Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir.

During the war in Afghanistan with the Russian armed forces, the CIA's has delivered Stinger man portable air defense systems which has offer a new wepon to counter the air power of Russia using combat helicopters as the Mi-24.

Such a capability, if it were widely distributed over the Syrian battlefield, could neuter Syrian's air power advantage over Bashar al-Assad forces.

A rebel unit in northwest Syria has constructed its own homemade air defense system which they hope will be able to shoot down aircraft using a rudimentary targeting technique.

Last week, Saudi Arabia has offered to send troops to Syria to fight extremist groups reflects growing unease over the ability of U.S.-led airstrikes alone to defeat the Islamic State group and end the Syrian civil war.

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir stated that ground-based military operations planned by Saudi Arabia in Syria are not against the country’s President Bashar al-Assad, but the IS.
He added that Saudi Arabia’s intention to participate in the ground-based operations in Syria shows that the country is not indifferent to the growth of terrorism threat in the region. Saudi Arabia started large-scale military exercises close to the Iraqi border. The military training known under name of "Northern Thunder" is expected to go on all this week and involves more than 2,500 warplanes, 20,000 tanks and 450 helicopters.

According to reports, Riyadh has billed the manoeuvre as "the largest and most important" drill ever staged in the region with allies of Saudi Arabia providing their own soldiers, from neighbouring Arab countries but also countries such as Pakistan, Chad and Sudan which make up the 350,000 ground forces.