Israeli media reported that combining open source news and Israeli satellite reconnaissance information, the Russian army took over the port of Latakia, an important port in northern Syria, in a high-profile manner on the afternoon of January 18.
On the same day, the Russian special police force stationed in Syria officially launched a 24-hour non-stop armed patrol at the port of Latakia, and the Syrian government army only sent a special operations team to assist the Russian army in taking over the port defense. The Russian military explained that the reason for taking over the defense of Latakia port was that extremist forces in Idlib province were planning attacks on Latakia port according to credible intelligence. Israeli media believe that this is just the "most reasonable excuse" for the Russian military to take over the defense of the port of Latakia.
Syria's second largest port, Latakia Port, is located off the coast of Northwestern Syria's Latazia province, near the de-escalation zone of the Idlib conflict, and the biggest security threat comes from the northern mountainous region of Latakia, which borders Idlib. The terrorist forces in which Sukul is based are home to a large number of extremist terrorists. These DT terrorist forces use sabotage groups and armed drones to sneak attack important strategic targets in Latakia Province, and their primary target of attack is Khmemim Air Base in La taggia Province, which is only about 30 kilometers from the port of Latakia and has been leased to the Russian Air Force indefinitely through an intergovernmental agreement.
With the Russian military's emphasis on destructive attacks and the strengthening of air defenses, it is now difficult for terrorist forces in the northern mountains of Idlib province to pose a substantial threat to Khmeimim Air Base. What's more, even during the most rampant period of terrorist attacks in previous years, Russian troops did not use this as a reason to take over the port of Latakia. Therefore, Russia's determination to take over the defense of Latakia Port this time should be aimed at the Israeli Air Force that sneaked into Latakia Port twice in succession at the end of December last year. In the most week of December, the Israeli Air Force twice dispatched F-16 fighter formations to carry out devastating strikes at the container terminal in the port of Latakia, causing huge losses and security threats to both syrian and Russian forces.
In this way, the judgment of Israeli military experts is reliable, they believe that the Russian army's intention to take over the defense of Latakia Port on the 18th is obvious, which is equivalent to directly issuing a warning to the Israeli military that if the Israeli air force violates it again, there will be no return. Israeli experts said that in fact, when [our] fighter jets took off from the home base, they entered the monitoring range of the Russian air defense radar, and the strike range of the S300 and S400 missiles was enough to shoot them down during the take-off and climb section of the Israeli warplanes. The Israeli Air Force's previous sneak attack missions have been successful every time, mainly thanks to the acquiescence of the Russian side. The premise is that the Israeli military's strike operations cannot threaten the safety of Russian personnel and facilities.
However, the recent Israeli Air Force airstrikes on the port of Latakia have touched Russia's red line. Although the port of Latakia is not within the scope of the Russian-Syrian intergovernmental agreement on the indefinite lease of the Khmerim air base, this port is essential for the delivery of supplies to the Russian air base in close proximity, and will not allow any external forces to interfere or destroy. As mentioned above, the port of Latakia is only 30 kilometers away from the Khmemim Air Base, and the S300/400 missile air defense system deployed by the Russian army at the Khmerimim military base can carry out air defense monitoring of the port of Latakia and the airspace of hundreds of kilometers outside the port of Latakia without dead ends. The so-called "no more than three things", the Israeli Air Force has succeeded in invading the port of Latakia twice, and if there is a third time, I am afraid that there will be no return.