Russia Not to Shift on Syria, US to Moscow: You’re Contributing in Civil War
Russia announced Thursday that "it is not considering changing its stance on Syria and any attempts to apply pressure on Moscow are hardly appropriate.
According to Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov, "it would make sense to expect a continuation of the Russian Federation's consistent and well-argued line on Syria during Putin's visit to Germany and France on Friday."
Putin will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande in brief visits to Berlin and Paris, part of his first foreign trip since he returned to Russia's presidency for a six-year term on May 7.
"Russia is a country with a consistent foreign policy and any pressure is hardly appropriate," Peskov said when asked whether Western and Arab countries were pressing Moscow to change its position.
He further stressed that "nobody has unambiguous information about the massacre in the Syrian town of Houla."
"Russia believes one should not give into emotions at such an important moment," he said.
In parallel, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized Thursday Russia's resistance to UN action on Syria, warning that its policy could contribute to a civil war.
"The Russians are telling me they don't want to see a civil war. I have been telling them their policy is going help to contribute to a civil war," Clinton told a mainly student audience on a visit to Copenhagen.
Clinton warned that unless unchecked, the deadly violence in Syria could lead to civil war or even morph into a proxy war because of "Iran's support for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad."
"We have to bring the Russians on board because the dangers we face are terrible," Clinton added
She further stated that "the absence of UN support for action in Syria due mainly to Russia's opposition makes it harder to respond to the crisis."
"The continued slaughter of innocent people, both by the military and by militias supported by the government and increasingly by the opposition... could morph into a civil war in a country that would be riven by sectarian divides, which then could morph into a proxy war in the region," head of US diplomacy warned.
Clinton also accused Iran of being deeply embedded in Syria. "Their military are coaching the Syrian military. The Quds Force, which is a branch of the military, is helping them set up these sectarian militias."
Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org
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