– Putin sends air defense missiles to Syria to deter Turkey; Erdogan and Obama seek to ease tensions
– Russian raids in Syrian province of Latakia continue after jet downed by Turkey
– France, US vow unity against ISIS; Russia says ready to join others in anti-ISIS coalition
– Syrian army source says rebels make heavy use of TOW missiles
– Joint projects and tourism with Turkey may be canceled after Russian jet downed
– Kurds discover ISIS tunnels under Sinjar

Putin sends air defense missiles to Syria to deter Turkey; Erdogan and Obama seek to ease tensions
On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered state-of-the art air defense missile systems to be deployed to a Russian airbase in Syria following the downing of a Russian warplane by Turkey on Tuesday. Despite the deployment, Russian FM Sergei Lavrov insisted it does not plan to wage war against Turkey. The S-400 missile systems, to be sent to the Hemeimeem air base in Syria’s coastal province of Latakia located about 50 kilometers south of the border with Turkey, are capable of targeting Turkish jets with deadly precision. Militants killed one of the two pilots of the downed Russian jet after bailing out. Syrian army commandos rescued his crewmate and delivered him in good condition to the Russian base. Capt. Konstantin Murakhtin, the Russian airman who survived the downing of the warplane, said on Wednesday on Russian television that the Turkish jets did not issue any warnings before engaging. Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Erdogan said on a televised speech in Istanbul, “We have no intention to escalate this incident. We are just defending our security and the rights of our brothers.” President Barack Obama agreed with Erdogan’s stance, saying, “This is a moment in which all parties can step back and make a determination as to how their interests are best served.” [AP, 11/25/2015]

Russian raids in Syrian province of Latakia continue after jet downed by Turkey
Russian warplanes carried out heavy air raids in Syria’s northern Latakia province a day after Turkey downed one of Moscow’s jets in the area, a monitoring group said on Wednesday. “Russian warplanes have since last night been carrying out heavy air strikes on the Jabal Akrad and Jabal Turkman regions” in the north of the province, said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) Director Rami Abdel Rahman. He added that Russian planes had carried out at least twelve strikes in the area since the morning, but had no information on any casualties. State television reported that Syrian warplanes were also carrying out strikes in the north of Latakia. [AFP, 11/25/2015]

France, US vow unity against ISIS; Russia says ready to join others in anti-ISIS coalition
France and the United States pledged Tuesday to step up the fight against ISIS, urging Russia to throw its weight behind global efforts to resolve the Syrian conflict. President Francois Hollande met President Barack Obama at the White House, eleven days after militants killed 130 people in the French capital, Hollande urged an “implacable” joint response to crush the group in Syria and Iraq. At a joint news conference, Obama pledged full US support in the wake of the Nov. 13 carnage. He said in French, “We are all French … We are here to declare that the United States and France stand united in total solidarity to deliver justice to terrorists and those who sent them, and to defend our nations.” The Russian Ambassador to France Alexander Orlov said Wednesday that Russia is “prepared to … plan strikes on [ISIS] positions together and create a joint staff with France, the US, with all the countries that want to be in this coalition.” [Daily Star, 11/25/2015]

Syrian army source says rebels make heavy use of TOW missiles
A Syrian military source said rebels are making heavy use of US-made anti-tank missiles paid for by Saudi Arabia and supplied via Turkey in recent weeks. The weapons are having an impact on the battlefield. The so-called TOW missile is the most potent weapon in the arsenal of rebel groups battling President Bashar al-Assad and has been seen in action more frequently since Russia intervened with air strikes on Syria on Sept 30. The US Central Intelligence Agency has supplied TOW missiles to rebels under a military support program for vetted Syrian groups that has included military training. The Syrian source said, “The one paying is Saudi, and the one securing the supply, is Turkey.” [Reuters, NYT, 11/25/2015]

Joint projects and tourism with Turkey may be canceled after Russian jet downed
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday the downing of a Russian warplane by Turkey could result in cancelling some important joint projects. As a result, Turkish companies could lose Russian market share, Medvedev said in a statement published on the government website. The Russian Association of Travel Agencies says several Russian agencies have stopped selling package tours to Turkey. [Reuters, AP, 11/25/2015]

Kurds discover ISIS tunnels under Sinjar
Under the Iraqi town of Sinjar, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants built a network of tunnels, complete with sleeping quarters, wired with electricity and fortified with sandbags. Kurdish forces that took the city in northwestern Iraq earlier this month, after more than a year of ISIS rule, uncovered the tunnels. ISIS has been digging tunnels for protection and movement throughout the territory it controls in Iraq and Syria, even before the US-led coalition launched its campaign of airstrikes against the group more than a year ago. The Kurdish forces also found boxes of US-made ammunition and bomb-making tools in the tunnels. [CBS, 11/25/2015]