The US secretary of state, John Kerry, has said Russia has proposed talks between the two countries’ militaries on the situation in Syria, apparently in response to Washington’s concern over reports of a Russian military buildup there.



Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov made the offer during a phone call on Wednesday, said Kerry, adding that he was in favour of such contacts because the US wants a better idea of what Russia’s current intentions are in Syria. Kerry said Lavrov had told him Russia was only interested in fighting the Islamic State militants.

The White House is also reportedly weighing a meeting between Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin when the latter comes to address the UN later this month.

Reports this week that Russia has expanded a Syrian airfield and is shipping military equipment including half a dozen tanks to the war-torn country have sparked worries that it could be preparing for an offensive in support of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Russian and Syrian officials have portrayed the deliveries as part of existing arms contracts, and Putin pledged on Tuesday to continue sending military aid to the Syrian government, arguing that the refugee crisis in Europe would be even worse if not for his support for Assad.

In the phone call on Wednesday, Kerry said he had warned Lavrov that these actions could worsen the situation. The US has argued for combating Isis by backing moderate Syrian rebels instead of Assad.

“I made clear that Russia’s continued support for Assad risks escalating the conflict and undermining our shared goal of fighting extremism if we do not also remain focused on finding the political solution,” Kerry told reporters. He also said that the United States, which will take in 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next year, could take more steps in this direction in the coming days.

The United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, echoed Kerry’s statements, saying on Wednesday that Russian military aid to Syria “will only help the situation going worse and worse”.

But Syria’s ambassador to the UN, Bashar Ja’afari, told reporters that Russia should be able to carry out airstrikes against Isis in Syria, arguing that it “doesn’t make sense” that the US can attack Isis with fighter jets while Russia “should be forbidden”. He also dismissed concerns about the Russian military buildup as the same kind of cooperation the two countries have done for years.

Earlier this week US officials told reporters that Moscow has sent artillery units and seven tanks to the Syrian airbase near Latakia on the Mediterranean coast as part of an ongoing military buildup.

A top Russian military official told reporters on Wednesday that Moscow didn’t rule out creating a military base in Syria.

“We don’t have any such plans at the current time. But anything is possible,” Nikolai Bogdanovsky, first deputy head of the general staff, said when asked about the reports of a base being built.

Suspicions that Russian troops or mercenaries are already fighting on the ground in Syria have grown in recent weeks as Russian fighters in Syria have posted pictures of themselves on social media websites. Russian words are audible in an August YouTube video showing what appeared to be a Russian armoured personnel carrier fighting north of Latakia.

This weekend, Russian state television reported two military transport planes had brought humanitarian aid and tents to Latakia airbase. But a Stratfor report analysing satellite imagery has said the Russians are expanding the runway and building additional housing at the airfield in what could be preparations for a military offensive.

An investigation published by citizen journalism project Bellingcat on Wednesday said sightings of a Russian jamming vehicle in Syria’s coastal region proved the military buildup and could pave the way for an offensive moving deeper into Syrian territory.

“Newly published images showing a Russian R-166-0.5 (ultra) high-frequency signals (HF/VHF) vehicle driving through Syria’s coastal region now leaves little to no doubt on Russia’s intentions in Syria,” the report said. “The R-166-0.5 provides jam-resistant voice and data communications over a long range, enabling Russian troops to communicate with their bases in the coastal strongholds of Tartus and Lattakia while operating far inland.”

The Russian presidential spokesman could not be reached for comment.