Russia Warns U.S.: Stop Military Attack Against Syria: Russia warned the United States on Sunday against saying that any unilateral military action in Syria would undermine efforts for peace and have a devastating impact on the security situation in the Middle East.
Russia warns US and the West that military action in Syria would be ‘illegal.’ But a strike on Syria may also ‘play into Moscow’s hands,’ says one expert. via Yahoo News
The Russian Foreign Ministry said its statement was a response to U.S. actions to give it the option of an armed strike against Syria.
“We urge our American colleagues and all members of the international community to show common sense and strictly abide by international law,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said today in a statement on its website.
“We are expecting the U.S. to fulfill its obligations regarding preparations for this conference.” “We regret that our American partners decided to cancel the bilateral meeting,” Gatilov said. “Fixing the parameters of a political settlement in Syria would be extremely useful now when the threat of military action hangs over the country.”
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“Attempts to bypass the Security Council, to once again create artificial, unproven excuses for an armed intervention in the region are fraught with new suffering in Syria and catastrophic consequences for other countries in the Middle East and Northern Africa,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement posted on the ministry’s website Tuesday.
“Moscow perceives Washington’s decision to postpone this meeting literally on the eve of the agreed-upon date with serious disappointment,” Mr. Lukashevich said.
Georgy Mirsky, an expert with the Center for Development and Modernization with the official Institute of World Economy and International Relations, says that Russia fully expects even limited Western military action will produce unexpected complications, such as civilian casualties, and that will provide Moscow with an opening to take the lead in restarting diplomacy.
“There’s nothing Russia can or should do to stop Western military intervention in Syria,” he says.
“Syria isn’t Libya. Battles are going on everywhere, and it will prove impossible to set up a secure zone. There is zero chance that Western forces will launch a ground war. So, it will be limited cruise missile attacks from ships; that might weaken Assad, but will not likely be decisive,” he says.
“Russia can sit and watch. A propaganda war will rage, and Moscow will be able to say that we wanted peace, we were working for the Geneva-2 conference, but it didn’t happen because they opted for military force instead….
As things stand, developments will play into Moscow’s hands. The US will compromise itself with another war in another Arab country, and look more than ever like a neo-colonialist power. Why would Obama want this?” he says.
Sources Russia Warns U.S. via Bloomberg | Forbes | Yahoo