Lavrov warns US, “NATO” states not to aid Syrian “protesters”, says: Destabilizing Syria would have repercussions far beyond its borders.”

Thursday 2 June 2011

Lavrov warns US, “NATO” states not to aid Syrian “protesters”, says: Destabilizing Syria would have repercussions far beyond its borders.”

Russia Warns NATO Not to Aid Syrian Protesters

By Henry Meyer, Brad Cook and Ilya Arkhipov - Jun 2, 2011 12:00 AM GMT+0400

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned the U.S. and European nations not to encourage anti-government protesters in Syria by holding out the prospect of military support like they provided in Libya.

“It is not in the interests of anyone to send messages to the opposition in Syria or elsewhere that if you reject all reasonable offers we will come and help you as we did in Libya,” Lavrov, 61, said yesterday during an interview in Moscow. “It’s a very dangerous position.” .......

Russia abstained from the March 18 vote by the United Nations Security Council that authorized the use of force to protect civilians from Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi’s forces, saying the resolution might lead to a “large-scale military intervention.” Operations led by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have stretched far beyond the stated goal of enforcing a no-fly zone, Lavrov said.
The U.K., France, Germany and Portugal asked the Security Council on May 25 to demand that Syria end attacks on peaceful protesters and address their grievances. The European Union last week imposed a travel ban and asset freeze on the “highest level of leadership,” a week after the U.S. froze the assets of Assad and six top officials.

UN Involvement Opposed

Russia opposes Security Council involvement in Syria, Lavrov said.
“First of all, the situation doesn’t present a threat to international peace and security,” he said. “Second, Syria is a very important country in the Middle East and destabilizing Syria would have repercussions far beyond its borders.”

While Russia is opposed to international intervention, it supports the need for change in Syria and has encouraged Assad to implement promised reforms, Lavrov said.

Assad on April 21 ordered the lifting of a 48-year-old state of emergency, abolished the Supreme State Security Court and issued a decree allowing peaceful protests. This week he offered a “general amnesty” covering political detainees.

“We are gratified that our appeals have been heard,”Lavrov said. “Recently he published a draft of a new constitution, he declared an amnesty for political prisoners, and I think this should calm the situation.”

Protests continued after the amnesty decree, issued late on May 31, as opposition leaders said it was a ploy to gain time.

UN Resolutions

Lavrov called for the Libyan resolution to be a unique one and said Russia will demand that any future UN mandates be more specific.

“If somebody would like to get authorization to use force to achieve a shared goal by all of us, they would have to specify in the resolution who this somebody is, who is going to use this authorization, what the rules of engagement are and the limits on the use of force,” Lavrov said.

Russia has stepped up diplomatic efforts to help forge a Libyan settlement that would persuade Qaddafi to step down and end NATO military action, Lavrov said.

At the Group of Eight summit last week in Deauville,France, U.S. President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy asked Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev to help negotiate a deal acceptable to coalition forces, the African Union and Libyan rebels, Lavrov said.

More

Russian figures condemn Western interference in Syria, reject US-EU measures

MOSCOW– Russian media and cultural figures on Wednesday condemned the Western interference in Syria's internal affairs, rejecting the implementation of the US-EU measures and the pressure campaign against Syria.

Head of the Russian Writers Union said in a statement to SANA in Moscow that the Russian public opinion expresses concern over some western countries' practices against Syria, clarifying that the old and new occupation powers are ready to destroy many countries and peoples to serve their interests.

He noted that Russia has recently formed a committee in solidarity with the Syrian and Libyan peoples.

He added that Russia supports the Syrian leadership's measures to preserve the sovereignty and freedom of its country, stressing the necessity of preserving the "cradle of civilizations" which is considered to be the example of religious tolerance and unity among the Syrian people.

A Russian newspaper editor said his country is taking a responsible attitude towards Syria and it is working in favor of not repeating the Libyan scenario in Syria.

He added that peaceful demonstrations are normal and a constitutional right in Syria and other countries; however the West mobilizes these demonstrations and equip them with sticks and guns to confront the security forces.

He concluded that Russia considers Syria as an essential country in the region, highlighting the deep-rooted Russian-Syrian relations.