Russia, Iran Warn Against Syria Attack

United Nations and Arab League envoy for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov discussing the political crisis in the Middle Eastern state., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

Russia, Iran warn against Syria attack

August 28, 2013

TEHRAN/MOSCOW. — Russia yesterday warned a military intervention in Syria could have “catastrophic consequences” for the region and called on the international community to show “prudence” over the crisis. “Attempts to by-pass the Security Council, once again, to create artificial groundless excuses for a military intervention in the region are fraught with new suffering in Syria and catastrophic consequences for other countries of the Middle East and North Africa,” a foreign ministry spokesman said.

“We are calling on our American partners and all members of the world community to demonstrate prudence (and) strict observance of international law, especially the fundamental principles of the UN Charter,” ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who is known for his sharp tongue, said on Twitter that “the West behaves towards the Islamic world like a monkey with a grenade.”

Earlier Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said that Moscow regretted Monday’s decision by the US to postpone a meeting on the Syria crisis, as Western powers mulled military action over last week’s chemical attack in Syria.

The scrapping of the meeting, which was due to take place at The Hague later in the week, is the latest sign of a new peak in tensions between Moscow and the West over the possibility of military strikes against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told British Prime Minister David Cameron in a telephone call on Monday there was no evidence yet that the Syrian regime had used chemical weapons against rebels, Cameron’s office said.

Meanwhile, the Iranian Foreign Ministry has warned against the dire consequences of a potential foreign military intervention in Syria.
Speaking at a Press conference yesterday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abbas Araqchi said a potential military offensive against Syria will entail dangerous and dire consequences, which will impact the whole Middle East.

The Iranian official also censured Western countries for their double standards regarding the on-going crisis in Syria.
They said: “Wherever the terrorists serve Western interests, they (Western powers) support these groups.”

Araqchi said there are documents indicating that the Takfiri militants in Syria had carried out the recent chemical attacks in the country.

— AFP/Press TV/FNA.