With the U.S. reducing its military presence in the Levant to a fraction compared to the massive footprint it had in the region during the campaigns in Iraq and against Daesh, and with Russia preoccupied with its failed war in Ukraine, it would seem unlikely that tensions between the two powers would rise here, away from the European Theatre of Operations.
Yet this is what happened, when Russian pilots flew too close for comfort to American planes over Syria, and American patrols came under fire by Russian-affiliated groups.
Is it by design or neglect, and can it escalate further into a major confrontation?
