NEW YORK/ANKARA, (SANA) – Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin stressed that the US announcement about not arming the opposition in Syria does not absolve of full responsibility for what is taking place in the country or the practices of the armed opposition.
In an interview with Russia Today TV channel, Churkin said that the US has great influence on countries like Qatar which is a main source for supporting and supplying the armed opposition with weapons, adding that if Washington adopted a strict policy in this regard, it could be able to influence these countries which provide the Syrian opposition with weapons.
“It is possible that the US began to realize, before other western allies, that the events in Syria reached a critical juncture as the scenario of bringing down the Syrian leadership and achieving democracy in two years proved to be unrealistic and far from the real situation in the country,” Churkin said.
Russia’s Ambassador in Ankara: Moscow Hopes Patriot Missiles Will Not Be Used for Purposes Other than Protecting Turkey
Russia’s Ambassador in Ankara Vladimir Ivanovsky said that Moscow hopes that the Patriot missile systems deployed at the Syrian-Turkish borders will not be used for purposes other than protecting the Turkish territories.
In a statement on Sunday, Ivanovsky said that there are various scenarios circulated by media on the possibilities of using the Patriot missile systems, adding that the reasons for such possibilities arise from doubts by some observers.
He added that “We are not questioning Turkey’s right to take the appropriate measures to ensure its security, but at the same time any additional weapons in hotspots do not consolidate regional security, rather they heighten the tension.”
He noted that President Vladimir Putin, during his visit to Turkey in December 2012, stressed that capabilities are more important than intentions.
On the opinion of the Turkish society regarding the stance of Russia towards Syria and the deployment of Patriot missiles on the borders, Ivanovsky said that “it is inappropriate and difficult for me as Russia’s ambassador to comment on the social trends of the hosting country,” stressing that there is a wide range of opinions, the majority of which call for speeding up the solution to the crisis in Syria through peaceful means without foreign interference.
