Russia: US Move to Arm Syria Militants a «Hostile Act»

Local Editor

Moscow considers the US decision to supply the armed groups in Syria with arms to be a "hostile act", Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, said on Tuesday.

The Russian Foreign Ministry added that these "hostile act" threatened the safety of Russian warplanes and military personnel, the RIA news agency reported.

Zakharova was quoted by TASS News Agency as saying "The transferred weapons would quickly end up in the hands of ‘jihadists', and Washington must realize this..."

She went on to say: "Perhaps, they even expect this to happen, since they actually sponsor Jabhat al-Nusra, which is a unit of al-Qaeda. This can hardly be called otherwise than aiding and abetting terrorists."

"The relevant decision also poses a direct threat to aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, other Russian military personnel, and our Embassy in Syria that has been shelled repeatedly, and that is why we consider this to be a hostile move," Zakharova said.

The ministry further added that the administration of US President Barack Obama was attempting to complicate the situation in the world before PE Donald Trump took over the White House in January.

"Instead of pooling efforts to counter rampaging extremists of every stripe and color, as we have suggested for a long time, Washington is staking on the provision of military aid to anti-government units, which differ little from bloody thugs," the diplomat stated.

On December 23, US President Barack Obama signed into law a bill that authorizes the Pentagon's actions to supply weapons to the so-called "moderate opposition" in Syria.

The Kremlin, whose air force is supporting the Syrian government, said the move was risky and that weapons could end up in the hands of "terrorists".

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team