Lavrov on Syria: We must not allow terrorists to take control of the territory

Published at: 07/12/2024 01:50 PM

It is unacceptable to allow terrorists to seize land in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Saturday during his participation in the Doha Forum, an international event that has been held in the capital of Qatar since 2003.

“It is unacceptable to allow the terrorist group to take control of lands in violation of existing agreements, starting with UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which strongly reaffirms the sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of the Syrian Arab Republic, which condemned any attempt by terrorists to disrupt the lives of Syrians and which called for direct dialogue between the Government and the opposition, and the opposition group were included in that resolution,” he stressed.

The Russian Foreign Minister, as reported by the RT portal, also indicated that the ministers of the Astana format called for dialogue between the parties in Syria and reaffirmed their commitment to their sovereignty. In addition, Lavrov assured that, together with Turkey and Iran, Russia will take steps to heed the call for de-escalation in Syria.

“In this context, Moscow, Tehran and Ankara urge dialogue between the country's authorities and the legitimate opposition,” he added.

Among other things, the head of Russian diplomacy denounced that, in 2018 and 2020, within the framework of the Astana format, two agreements were signed “that clearly consolidated the common determination not to allow Hayat Tarawut in Idlib”, but “these agreements have not been implemented” and “are now being flagrantly violated”.

“Russia's role is to fight against terrorist groups in Syria, even if they say they are no longer terrorists,” he said.

Commenting on reports that Russia has withdrawn ships from its base in Tartus, he said that military maneuvers are taking place in the Mediterranean region. “There are military maneuvers in the Mediterranean. Maybe his satellite images confused him with something else,” he said.

Mazo News Team