Russia, in favor of Iran's presence at conference on Syria

Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, denounced that Iran did not participate in the international conference on Syria, as Tehran is an influential state in the region and in Syria.

Photo: Sergei Lavrov

"Iran is one of the countries that have influence on the Syrian government," the Russian diplomat stressed Saturday in a press conference on Syria he called as soon as possible to implement the peace plan of the Special Envoy of the United Nations Organization (UN) to Syria, Kofi Annan.

With these statements, Lavrov has opposed U.S. and western countries and some who question the presence of Tehran at the negotiating table on the Arab country.

The Russian foreign minister also called on the permanent members of the Security Council of the UN (United States, Britain, France, China and Russia), the Arab League and the neighboring countries of Syria, including Iran, to take part in this conference.

He also reiterated Moscow's position, to oppose approving any resolution authorizing military intervention in Syria, arguing that an initiative like this "would bring serious consequences for the entire Middle East region."

According to Lavrov, an armed offensive against Syria will make instability contagious throughout the region, from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf.

This week, during an international conference in the Turkish city of Istanbul, representatives from France, the USA and the United Kingdom discarded the idea of having Iran participate in a meeting on Syria.

The U.S. and the Syrian National Council (SNC, the main opposition) accused the Islamic Republic of Iran of meddling in the internal affairs Syrians.

In fact, with such lies, Washington seeks to hide the plots that it weaves for arming and financing armed terrorist groups opposing the Syrian government.

On the 25th of May, the U.S. news agency Associated Press (AP) revealed that government officials in Washington were preparing a plan to arm the rebel groups in Syria.

According to U.S. officials, their mission was to test the ability of insurgent terrorist groups to receive arms and ammunition and launch attacks against the Syrian government, as well as to guarantee that arms do not fall into the hands of the enemies of the Israeli regime.

Syria, the scene of battles between Syrian security forces and terrorist groups from mid-March 2011, witnesses the death of many fellow citizens, both civilian and military.

The west and some Arab countries in the region blame Syrian President, Bashar al-Asad, for the slaughter of his own people. However, Damascus blames the west for supplying arms and financing terrorist groups entrenched in Syria.

Translated from the Spanish version by:

Lisa Karpova
Pravda.Ru