U.S. interference in Syrian conflict will lead to chaos in Middle East – political expert

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, August 26, 2013) U.S. President Barack Obama could possibly resort to military intervention in the Syrian conflict due to pressure of his political opponents, but will try to limit it to a short-term war, head of a working group under the Russian president’s human rights council, political expert Sergei Karaganov said. Obama will do everything possible not […]

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Confusion and Irritation Reign in Global Politics

World Map Showing Continents, Greens, Browns, Ice

(RIA Novosti – Fyodor Lukyanov, Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal, authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments – July 11, 2013) The events in Egypt have come to represent a colorful culmination of yet another fall-summer season in world politics, the keynotes of which are: on the one hand, the general inability to […]

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Russian, US experts disagree on many aspects of Syria situation – senator

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(Interfax – July 9, 2013) The situation in Syria and its impact on the whole Middle East were the main topics of discussion during a meeting of Russian and American experts in Moscow, privately-owned Interfax news agency reported on 9 July. Member of the Federation Council’s international affairs committee Igor Morozov told journalists that the experts met at a Russian-American […]

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Moscow slams West’s ‘double standards’-based Syria policy

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Interfax – MOSCOW, July 8, 2013) Moscow has again slammed the West for a policy on the Syrian conflict based on “double standards.” “We deplore the position of our Western partners in the UN Security Council – in debating the Syria issue, they continue to observe double standards. Moreover, this is far from the first instance of such non-objective and […]

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Russian Navy Pulls Personnel Out of Syria Base – Deputy FM

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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 27, 2013) ­ Russia currently has no military personnel at its resupply facility in the Syrian port of Tartus, a senior diplomat said, though an expert affiliated with the Ministry of Defense downplayed it as a possible temporary measure. “Currently, there is no one in Syria from the Russian Defense Ministry,” Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail […]

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Our Changing World Order – the More Options for Cooperation, the Merrier

File Photo of G8 Heads of State Outdoors in 2013

(RIA Novosti – Simon Saradzhyan – June 25, 2013 – Simon Saradzhyan is a researcher at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center) The recent G-8 summit in Northern Ireland quickly became another reminder that Russia has not quite integrated into what was originally founded as a club comprising the West’s richest liberal democracies. Post-Soviet Russia may boast the world’s sixth largest […]

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TRANSCRIPT: Putin answers questions at St Petersburg Economic Forum – Kremlin transcript

File Photo of St. Petersburg Economy Forum Outdoor Banners and Building Facade

(Kremlin.ru – June 21, 2013) Text of report “Answers to questions from St Petersburg International Economic Forum participants, 21 June 2013, St Petersburg” published in English by Russian presidential website on 24 June; subheadings added editorially: Russia’s priorities in G20 MODERATOR (retranslated): Mr President, the St Petersburg International Economic Forum is being held in your hometown. I would like to […]

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Russia in the Syrian Conflict

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

Subject: No. 128: Russia in the Syrian Conflict Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:40:19 +0200 From: “Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)” <newslist@isn.ch> RUSSIAN ANALYTICAL DIGEST Newsletter 10 June 2013/No. 128 Russia in the Syrian Conflict To download this issue please click here http://www.css.ethz.ch/publications/DetailansichtPubDB_EN?rec_id=2561 Analyses The Impact of the Syrian Conflict on Russian Relations with Other Middle Eastern Countries, by Mark N. […]

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Syria: the bad guys and the bad guys

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(Moscow News – Anna Arutunyan, Correspondent and Editor at themoscownews.com – June 24, 2013) In the geopolitical drama over the ongoing Syrian civil war, Russia’s position, on the surface, appears to be clear as glass. Of course Russia’s backing Syrian authoritarian leader Bashar al Assad, the narrative goes – it fears a similar uprising back home. Actually, the Kremlin’s stance […]

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Only unbiased international experts can establish if chemical weapons were used in Syria – Ryabkov

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(Interfax – LOUGH ERNE, June 18, 2013) Only independent and serious expert analysis can establish the truth about the Syrian government’s alleged use of chemical weapons. Empty claims cannot be accepted, said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. “We cannot agree with unilateral arguments and empty claims that the Syrian government uses chemical weapons. We need to draw the most […]

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Putin says not ‘alone’ on Syria

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Anna Arutunyan – June 19, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin bristled over claims that he alone was opposing seven world leaders over how to deal with the Syria conflict during the G8 Summit this week in Northern Ireland. Asked by a reporter if he felt “lonely,” Putin said: “Of course not. That’s absolutely not true. […]

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G8 leaders tackle taxes, Syria, North Korea and terrorism

File Photo of G8 Heads of State Outdoors in 2013

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Yuri Paniyev, special to RBTH – June 18, 2013) With the G8 summit in full swing in Northern Ireland, the world’s leaders try to tackle financial and international challenges including tax evasion, the Middle East stand-off, the Syrian crisis and the North Korea nuclear problem. G8 leaders began their two-day summit at the […]

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Obama, Putin will try to come closer on Syria but unlikely to succeed – pundits

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(Interfax – June 17, 2013) Analysts believe that the leaders of Russia and the United States at their bilateral meeting in the framework of the G8 summit in Northern Ireland are likely to pay most of their attention to the Syrian conflict and preparations for the Geneva conference on Syria. “I believe with a probability of 60 percent or even […]

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Russia Keeps Freeze on S-300 Contract with Syria – Kremlin

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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 14, 2013) ­ Russia is not planning to deliver S-300 air defense systems to Syria, despite the announcement by the US administration on Thursday of its intention to supply the Syrian opposition with weaponry, a presidential aide said on Friday. “The issue has not been raised yet,” aide Yury Ushakov told reporters in Moscow in […]

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Interfax: Putin hopes new initiatives on Syria will help settle the crisis

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Interfax – MOSCOW, June 12, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he hopes that the recent peace initiatives, including the Russian-U.S. idea to convene an international conference, will provide the chance for settling the crisis in Syria. “I really hope that the initiatives that were proposed, among others, by the Egyptian president, with whom we recently met in Sochi […]

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RIANovosti: Russian Minister Condemns West’s ‘Double Standards’ on Syria [Lavrov]

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 11, 2013) ­ Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has criticized the West’s “double standards” in dealing with foreign regimes it has branded as dictatorial, and defended Russia’s arms contracts with Syria. Speaking in a recent interview with America’s CBS network released on Monday evening, Lavrov said the West had a policy of double standards in […]

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Moscow Slams Western Support for Syria Opposition

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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 7, 2013) Western support for Syria’s armed opposition will only fuel violence in the war-torn country, Russia’s foreign minister insisted on Friday. “We are disturbed by statements coming from leaders of the so-called Free Syrian Army as well as from some US representatives, to the effect that support for the armed opposition will continue in […]

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Moscow wants clarity from Turkey on detention of militants with sarin – Lavrov

Sergei Lavrov file photo

(Interfax – PIONERSKY, Kaliningrad region, June 6, 2013) Turkey has still not clarified reports that militants possessing sarin were detained on its territory some time ago, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “I would like to seize this opportunity to remind you that we still expect full information from our Turkish partners regarding reports, which came about a week ago, […]

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RIA Novosti: UN ‘Welcomes’ Russian Peacekeepers in Golan Heights

Partial Map of Portions of Northern Israel, Golan Heights, Syria, Lebanon

(RIA Novosti – New York, June 7, 2013) ­ The United Nations would welcome Russian peacekeepers in the Golan Heights, UN spokesman Farhan Haq told RIA Novosti on Friday. “The UN welcomes any contribution by the world community to peacemaking efforts in the Golan Heights, and the UNDOF [UN Disengagement Observer Force] is very important for the maintenance of peace […]

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Syrian conundrum: Running in circles in search of a solution

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – May 31, 2013) Some Russian pundits believe that the upcoming international conference on Syria indicates that the U.S. and EU want to distance themselves from the Syrian conflict, because it is clearly becoming a burden to them. The opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are clearly not […]

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Moscow believes Gulf countries backed by West hindering Syria conference – newspaper

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, May 29, 2013) Moscow believes that some Persian Gulf countries supported by the United States and other Western countries are hampering the convention of a new international conference on Syria, Kommersant reported in its Wednesday issue. “The position and provocations (by Persian Gulf countries) are possibly the main factor complicating the convention of the conference,” Kommersant cited […]

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Experts in Russia Say Moscow Should Heed Lessons from Wars in Syria, Libya and Yugoslavia

Kremlin and St. Basil's

(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 10, Issue 101 – Valery Dzutsev – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – May 29, 2013) On April 26, the authoritative Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta hosted a roundtable of experts on the situation in Syria. Although almost all the experts, as usual, accused the United States and the West of fueling civil unrest in Syria now and […]

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Doubts Cast Over Reported S-300 Deliveries to Syria

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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, May 30, 2013) ­ Reports that Syria’s president had confirmed receiving a consignment of Russian-manufactured S-300 air defense systems emerged Thursday, but were quickly brought into question. In comments widely reported across the world, Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar quoted Syrian President Bashar Assad as saying Damascus had received initial deliveries of the S-300 system. Assad’s remarks […]

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Top Russian diplomat on problems with USA over Syria conference

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(Interfax – Moscow, May 28, 2013) Russia and the USA have not yet succeeded in aligning their positions on a number of important parameters for an international conference on Syria, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov. “There remain issues and aspects of this major international crisis on which the positions of Russia and the USA have not converged,” Ryabkov said […]

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Interfax: Russia needs ‘clear and reliable’ missile defence guarantees

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(Interfax – May 24, 2013) Russia needs “clear and reliable” guarantees that US missile defences will not be aimed against it and will take “military-technical” measures in response to their deployment, Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolay Patrushev has told Interfax news agency. “They will be taken as required, as the USA progresses in the creation of its missile […]

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Presidential vote not to save Syria from collapse – Russian military official

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Interfax – Moscow, May 23, 2013) Radical groups in Syria will continue to impose their conditions of forming a government system even if the election of a new president is held in the republic, and this can provoke the collapse of the country, the chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, […]

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Syria: Does the path to peace run through Geneva?

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – May 21, 2013) The campaign to resolve the Syrian crisis has entered a new phase. However, if the upcoming international conference, dubbed Geneva-2, focuses entirely on increasing the pressure on President Bashar al-Assad, there will be a long way to go before peace is achieved in the […]

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Libya catastrophe sets precedent for new type of intervention by force – Russian Constitutional Court Head

Russian Constitutional Court file photo

(Interfax – ST. PETERSBURG, May 17, 2013) The state catastrophe in Libya shows that lawful methods of resolving the issue have been substituted for use of force and this creates chaos in most parts of Africa, Russian Constitutional Court Chairman Valery Zorkin said. “Researchers and experts acknowledge a very dangerous destruction of the international legal system, more and more frequent […]

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RIA Novosti: Lavrov Plays Down Reports of New Missile Deliveries to Syria

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, May 17, 2013) ­ Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday responded to a New York Times report that Russia has sent advanced antiship cruise missiles to war-torn Syria by saying that Russian arms deliveries do not change the balance of power, are fully legal and take place under existing contracts. Citing unidentified American officials, The […]

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re: Jackson Diehl on Extremists; from: John Evans

File Photo of Boston Bombings Aftermath with Ambulance and Security Personnel

Subject: Jackson Diehl on Extremists From: John Evans <evansinusa@aol.com> Date: Thu, 2 May 2013 Jackson Diehl’s attempt to conflate the Chechen rebels with the Syrian rebels (“Extremists of Putin’s Own Making,” Washington Post op-ed, April 29, JRL #80) and then blame it all on the Russian President risks misleading readers into imagining that Russia, not Islamist extremism, is our current […]

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Chechen ‘Jihadist International’ emerges in Syria

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Mark Galeotti, special to RBTH – April 15, 2013) Mark Galeotti is Professor of Global Affairs at New York University. His blog, ‘In Moscow’s Shadows,’ can be read here: inmoscowsshadows.wordpress.com/ The result of the Syrian crisis is likely to affect Russia’s positions in the world and influence in the Middle East. At the […]

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Russian analysts differ on the future of Syria

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Oleg Fomichev, RBTH – April 5, 2013) Russian experts disagree on whether or not a political solution in Syria is still possible. This April marks the second anniversary of the Syrian uprising. Unlike the other Arab revolutions, it can be characterized by its deep involvement of Russian interests. While Moscow remains critical of […]

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West adjusts ‘Libyan scenario’ to Syria – Pushkov

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

MOSCOW. April 2 (Interfax) – The West has opted for a course to overthrow Bashar al-Assad by supporting rebels, not by launching a military operation, said Alexei Pushkov, the chairman of the State Duma’s International Affairs Committee. “Apparently, the stage of political maneuvers is drawing to its close. The West is passing over to a modified Libyan scenario in Syria […]

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Alexander Vershbow: Our primary concern is that Assad regime could use chemicals weapons

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Interfax – March 29, 2013) Interview Deputy NATO Secretary General Alexander Vershbow, who is visiting Moscow for an informal conference of former U.S. ambassadors to Russia and Russian ambassador to the United States, has given an interview to Interfax in which he speaks about NATO-Russia cooperation, as well as pressing issues on the international agenda, such as the missile defense […]

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Replay of Libyan scenario in Syria would be major strategic mistake – Russian diplomat

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MOSCOW. March 21 (Interfax) – A replay of the Libyan scenario by NATO forces in Syria would be a major strategic mistake, says Russian permanent representative to the EU Vladimir Chizhov. “If this is an element of some political pressure, it is one situation, which I think is unlikely to help the cause. If this is serious, this is even […]

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USA did not learn its lesson in Iraq, continues policy in Syria – top Russian MP

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(Interfax – Moscow, March 20, 2013) The chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, Aleksey Pushkov, has said that the USA, which suffered a serious political defeat as a result of the war in Iraq initiated by it 10 years ago, was still carrying on a similar policy towards other Middle East countries, in particular Syria. “The Americans’ […]

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China Predicts Energy Talks Breakthrough in Xi’s Visit to Russia

File Photo of Blue Flame from Natural Gas

(Bloomberg News – bloomberg.com –  March 20, 2013) China anticipates a breakthrough in energy talks during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow this week, an achievement that may strengthen ties between neighbors wary of U.S. motives on issues from Iran to Asia policy. China wants to sign an agreement on a natural-gas pipeline during Xi’s three-day trip this week, Vice […]

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Russian pundits say Syrian conflict to last for decades

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(Interfax – Moscow, March 15, 2013) According to Russian political analysts, after two years since its beginning, the Syrian conflict has expanded to a regional level, which means that the situation in the Arab world will stabilize only after several generations. “There is certainly a risk that the conflict will spread. It is quite obvious that the conflict is spreading […]

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Syrian Crisis: Russian Pundits Predict Escalation

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines/Interfax – rbth.ru – March 15, 2013) Russian political scientists speculate that increasing instability in the Arab world could further exacerbate the Syrian conflict and heighten tensions in the Middle East. The Syrian conflict has taken on a regional scale since it broke out two years ago, Russian political scientists said, adding that the chance of restoring […]

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Moscow Takes Issue with US Stance on Syria

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

MOSCOW, March 12 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow criticized on Tuesday what it described as the United States’ biased interpretation of the Geneva Communiqué as supporting the Syrian opposition. “Public statements by representatives of the US administration in support of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces in fact point to a one-sided interpretation of the Geneva Communique,” Russian […]

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Chagrin and Ambivalence in Putin’s Foreign Policy

File Photo of Vladimir Putin Sitting at Desk

(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 10, Issue 45 – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Pavel K. Baev – March 11, 2013) Entering the second year of his third presidency, President Vladimir Putin has shown uncharacteristically scant interest to foreign policy matters perhaps suspecting that Western “partners” are sponsoring Russia’s opposition movement and that neighboring post-Soviet leaders and even Chinese “friends” are […]

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NEWSLINK: Russia Won’t Tell Assad to Go, Sees Flexibility Among His Foes

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[Russia won’t tell Assad to go, sees flexibility among his foes – Reuters – Steve Gutterman – March 8, 2013 – http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/08/us-syria-crisis-russia-idUSBRE9270GB20130308] Reuters covers Russian policy towards the bloodshed and potential regime change in Syria, including recent public comments by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov disavowing a call for Syrian strong-man Basha Al-Assad to step down peacefully: Russia will ‘absolutely […]

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Damascus explosion sparks new criticism of the US

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Ekaterina Zabrovskaya, Nikolay Surkov, RBTH – February 27, 2013) Moscow sees U.S. objection to a U.N. statement condemning the recent terrorist attack in Syria as a double standard. The discussion of a U.N. Security Council statement condemning the latest terrorist attack in Damascus, that killed 53, has engendered yet another upsurge in Moscow’s […]

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Kerry, Lavrov Tackle Syria, Adoptions in ‘Constructive’ Talks

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BERLIN, February 26 (RIA Novosti) ­The United States and Russia will do “everything possible” to facilitate a dialogue between the Syrian government and the armed opposition, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday in Berlin following his first bilateral meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry. “No one will solve the Syrians’ problems for them, but in order for […]

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Moscow Concerned about Syria, Not Assad – Minister

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

MOSCOW, February 25 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow’s position on Syria stems from its concern for the Syrian people, and not the fate of President Bashar al-Assad, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday. “Russia’s position is not predetermined by support of personalities; it is dictated by concern about the fate of the Syrian people, our long-standing friend and partner, and […]

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Russia stuck in Syrian conundrum; Moscow is looking for a force to take responsibility for the settlement in Syria

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Nikolay Surkov, special to RBTH – February 19, 2013) Nikolay Surkov is an assistant professor at Moscow State Institute of Foreign Affairs While Western actors push for the creation of an interim government in Syria, Russia is pessimistic about chances for improvement in the situation. Moscow sees no state willing to guarantee such […]

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Ousting Syrian President Would Be ‘Wrong’ – Senior Russian MP

File Photo of Bashar al-Assad and Sergei Lavrov

(RIA Novosti – February 13, 2013) Russia will not agree to the ousting of Syrian President Bashar al-Asad, chairman of the State Duma Committee for International Affairs Aleksey Pushkov said at a news conference in Moscow on 13 February. He also pointed out that Russia’s position on Syria remained the same, while the West’s position was shifting in recognition of […]

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Russian Arms Sales Double as Sales to Syria Continue

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Bratersky – February 14, 2013) Russia sold twice as many weapons abroad in 2012 as in the previous year. It now has a portfolio of $37 billion in foreign orders and continues to sell anti-aircraft systems to Syria, a senior arms trade executive told reporters Wednesday. Although India is still the country’s No. 1 […]

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