Russian troops are actively trying to prevent US military aircraft from flying over Syria, interfering with the signals emitted by the Global Positioning System (GPS), thereby interfering with flight operations. Drone jammers are “seriously affecting” U.S. drone operations, but it is unclear how serious the Russian intervention is.
NBC News quoted four sources inside the Pentagon as reporting that the transmission of GPS signals began a few weeks ago. It began shortly after the chemical attack by the Syrian regime in the anti-government-controlled Guta area. According to reports, Russian troops are worried that the US military will use chemical weapons and drones to retaliate to prevent US forces from gathering intelligence.
Russia ’s use of UAV jamming without full-scale warfare will reduce its effectiveness in real warfare, because the US and Allied forces will study these signals and find ways to overcome these jamming systems. The US Army is already looking for field weapons that do not rely on GPS for millimeter accuracy. In the long run, providing military support to a regime that spends its own people may eventually hurt Russia militarily, not to mention politically.