President Bashar al-Assad has been accused of killing his own people (Wikimedia Commons).

With violence in Syria reaching new heights and accusations that the Russians are providing the Syrian government with attack helicopters, the situation has begun to increase global tension between the United States and Syria's biggest ally, Russia, according to Reuters.

Fox News has video of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton talking about the United States's opposition to what they believe is Russia's continued supply of attack helicopters. 

Reports that the Syrian government uses helicopters to kill civilians have reached the United States.

The Russians have accused the United States of arming the anti-government forces.  The State Department denied these claims.

Reuters: "Publicly critical of violence by all parties but broadly lining up behind embattled Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad are not only Iran but also long-term ally Russia. At stake for Moscow could be its Tartus naval base and lucrative trade, including arms sales. While there are few signs of any direct involvement, China looks to be throwing its diplomatic weight behind Moscow, both keen to avoid a repeat of events in Libya."

Western states are also worried about reports that al-Qaeda-linked fighters are joining the fight against Syria's government. 

The BBC reports that Chinese and Russian media have suggested that Syrian President Assad "is facing a violent insurgency that has allowed Islamic terrorists and various criminal elements to wreak havoc in the country." 

Russian media exonerate government forces and do not mention the Shabiha militias.  Both of these forces are blamed in Western media for atrocities.

BBC: "They frequently refer to the armed opposition in very negative terms, such as "bandits", "terrorists" and "armed gangs" and they lay the blame for most of the violence at their door."

Both Russia and the United States have stated their complete reluctance of getting involved militarily in the Syrian conflict.  

The Free Syrian Army and President al-Assad's forces have been denied that the conflict should be labeled a civil war.  

The civil war label may make it even more difficult for journalists and peacekeepers to enter the war-torn country.

Journalists have not been able to report from Syria, but video of the carnage has been seen internationally.

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