Russian military officers told the United States during the incident that Moscow was not involved. But they took direction from someone," Mattis told reporters flying back to Washington with him from a trip to Europe, according to a Pentagon transcript. The contractors, mostly ex-military, carry out missions assigned to them by the Russian military, the people familiar with the deployment said. The United States and Russia, while backing opposite sides in the Syria conflict, have taken pains to make sure that their forces do not accidentally collide. A Russian military vehicle is seen on the road heading to Deir al-Zor in Kabakeb on Sept. 21, 2017.

Source: CBC News February 18, 2018 06:11 UTC