Foreign involvement in the Syrian Civil War

The United States has asked Greece to ban Russian supply flights to Syria from its airspace, a Greek official said on Sept.7, amid growing US fears that Moscow is increasing its military backing for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Moscow dismissed Sept. 7 U.S. concern of a Russian military buildup in Syria, saying its military aid to Bashar al-Assad was nothing out of the ordinary.

Over the weekend US Secretary of State John Kerry phoned his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to express concern about reports of an "enhanced Russian buildup" in Syria.

France will launch surveillance flights over Syria from Sept.8 with a view to conducting airstrikes on Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) positions, President Francois Hollande said on Sept.7.

A Syrian child speaks into the microphone on the Greek island of Kos. This is what he says: ?It is better to die on the road than living in Turkey.? 

When asked about the most undesirable way of dying, most people would say ?drowning.?

This child is saying that the worst way to die is living in Turkey.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sept.4 that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was willing to hold early parliamentary elections and share power with the "healthy" opposition.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad is ready to call in a snap parliamentary vote to allow a "healthy" opposition to join power.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sept.4 it was premature to talk about Russia taking part in military operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as the US said it was checking reports of Russian troops in Syria.

French President Francois Hollande said Aug. 25 that Turkey should do more to tackle Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria and urged it to restore dialogue with Kurdish groups after launching strikes against them more than a month ago. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin is to host the Jordanian King and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi in Moscow on Aug. 25 to discuss the Syrian crisis and take part in a showcase of Russia's military industry.

We know the official explanations by the U.S. and Germany for pulling out their Patriot missile batteries from Turkey. Washington says its Patriots will be deployed to the U.S. for upgrading, and adds that if needed they can be back in a week.