Lavrov Meets Manaa: Syrians must Decide Fate Away from Foreign Pressures

Local Editor

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged on Monday Syrians to decide their own fate.

During a meeting with opposition figure Haitham Manaa, Lavrov stated: "The most important thing is that all the questions be decided by the Syrians themselves, without pressure from abroad, so that the Syrians themselves decide their own fate and the fate of individual politicians."

"The situation in Syria is not getting any better, even though all the sides agree that there should be an end to violence and the start of dialogue," he lamented.
In parallel, he slammed West's and Arab's support to irreconcilable opposition: "There are many of those who are trying to prevent this, including some outside sponsors of the so-called 'irreconcilable opposition'."

This comes as Moscow reiterated its accusation to regional and Western powers of using double standards by helping the armed opposition with financial support used to purchase weapons while at the same time calling for talks.
Lavrov further hoped that the more moderate opposition voices could unite in an effort to get negotiations underway with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad .
"Uniting the patriotic opposition for a dialogue will go a long way to achieving the goals we want," said the head of Russia's diplomacy.

For his part, Haitham Manna of the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change said he thought the road to peace in Syria ran through Moscow.

"We have always said that a peaceful political solution goes through Moscow," Manna told Lavrov in opening remarks of their meeting at the Russian foreign ministry.

"A military solution is still being enforced on the ground. But the predominant majority of Syrians are convinced that a political solution is desirable, that it will save us, and that it stands a real chance," he mentioned.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org