“if they are endangered by them”
Pro-Putin mouthpiece Zerohedge buries the lede that this is only authorization to shoot back if the Russians start something.
You do make a valid point. Zero Hedge often presents what can be called the Russian point of view. That’s why I took pains to check the original Sunday Times article.
Regardless, it seems like individual UK pilots now have the power to decide when they “endangered” enough to fire on Russian aircraft. No way is that a good thing.
Is Syrian civil war so vital to us that we risk confrontation with Russian aircraft? Especially since the still recognized government of Syria invited them in and has demanded that we leave their territory. Assad is a butcher but he is the leader of a sovereign state.