Syria: Russia Denounces Foreign Intervention, Western Hypocrisy

RT
June 9, 2012

Annan plan stalled because of those who support intervention, but plan ‘only chance for peace’ – Russian FM

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Lavrov has voiced concern about “the reaction on the part of some foreign players”, who, he said, “support armed groups of the opposition and at the same time demand that the international community take decisive steps to change the regime in Syria.”

The minister said that “in order to justify a foreign intervention they keep talking about the refugees from Syria. However, nobody talks about refugees inside Syria itself.”

“This is similar to the former Yugoslavia. Does anybody think about the refugees from Serbia and Slovenia [Croatia?]?” he enquired.

“According to some estimates, there are about a million refugees from Iraq and half a million Palestinians in Syria, and I don’t think people talk much about that,” Lavrov said.

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External players provoke the opposition in Syria to continue military action; this may lead to a Libyan scenario, the Russian Foreign Minister warned.

The main reason the Annan peace plan is stalling is because those who support external intervention in Syria impede its implementation, said Sergey Lavrov.

Lavrov said the main reason why the Kofi Annan plan is not making progress is that certain parties “don’t like” the idea of the stabilization it would bring “during the initial period. They want the international community to be filled with indignation and start a full-blown intervention in Syria,” he said.

Lavrov has voiced concern about “the reaction on the part of some foreign players”, who, he said, “support armed groups of the opposition and at the same time demand that the international community take decisive steps to change the regime in Syria.”

He reiterated Russia’s position that it will “never agree to sanction the use of force in the UN Security Council”. He said that this would lead “to severe consequences for the entire Middle East region”.

Referring to the UN commissioner, Lavrov then gave some statistics, saying that the number of refugees from Syria currently stands at around 80,000. He stressed that these people all need support.

The minister said that “in order to justify a foreign intervention they keep talking about the refugees from Syria. However, nobody talks about refugees inside Syria itself.”

“This is similar to the former Yugoslavia. Does anybody think about the refugees from Serbia and Slovenia?” he enquired.

The community, he stressed, should think more helping refugees. “According to some estimates, there are about a million refugees from Iraq and half a million Palestinians in Syria, and I don’t think people talk much about that,” Lavrov said.

Lavrov said the Syrian government is responsible for people’s security and human rights, as well as for everything that is going on in the country.

Nevertheless, tragedies like Houla and the other numerous violent acts are a result of confrontation, which is increasingly actively supported by external forces. He also expressed concern over Russian experts coming under fire in Damascus on Saturday.

The Foreign Minister also touched on media coverage of the events in Syria, saying that “blocking Syrian government and private channels from broadcasting” does not “square well with freedom of speech.” He recalled the airstrikes on TV centers in Serbia’s Belgrade and Libya’s Tripoli. “We should all be on the same page regarding freedom of speech and how it should be respected by the international community to ensure access to information – no matter what kind of information it is,” Lavrov said.

Conference in Moscow to help implement Annan’s plan

Moscow has proposed an international conference on the Syrian crisis with all key international players taking part.

Russia has expressed hope that all the parties that can influence the issue will take part, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said following a UN session where the Secretary General announced that Syrian president Bashar al Assad had lost his legitimacy.

“The conference should come under the UN umbrella,” said Lavrov, adding that the global discussion would not be a one-off event.

With some western countries calling to ban Iran from the international conference on Syria, Lavrov said to dismiss Tehran “would be thoughtless at the very least”.

Russia is seriously concerned about the increasing activity of international terrorists and extremist elements, Lavrov said.

The FM listed Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Turkey, Iran, the League of Arab States, the EU and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation among the “integral parts” to the process.

Also on Thursday Lavrov told journalists he guarantees that “there’ll be no mandate by the UN Security Council for a foreign intervention.”

The Russian Foreign Minister is currently speaking on Syria. More details are to follow.