Back to...

GET VISIBLE! Advertise Here. Find Out More







Share Our Stories! - Click Here

 

Russian Foreign Ministry on Syria


By Stephen Lendman
stephenlendman.org
2-18-18

 
At her weekly press briefing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova (MZ below) discussed conditions in Syria at length, saying:

“(E)xternal forces...play(ing) their own game in Syria” continue undermining all-out good faith Russian efforts to restore peace and stability to Syria.

Clearly she means Washington and its rogue allies. Sergey Lavrov accused the Trump administration of operating in Syria illegally, wanting the country partitioned, opposing Russia’s support for its territorial integrity.

MZ: US forces “around Al Tanf” in southern Syria have “become a safety zone for what is left of the ISIS fighters.”

“US activities to the east of the Euphrates River were also provocative as they engaged in…open confrontation with the Syrian Army…”

“Provoking Turkey, the Americans continued sending the Kurds new arms in convoys via Iraq. In turn, Turkey continued fighting the Kurds close to Afrin in the northwest of Syria as part of its Operation Olive Branch.”

US-supported al-Nusra terrorists “are still engaged in aggressive and provocative actions in the western part of the Eastern Ghouta de-escalation zone, including the heavy mortar-shelling of Damascus,” killing civilians.

MZ debunked Western media reports, claiming numerous Russian killed by US warplanes in Deir Ezzor last week, explaining:

“According to preliminary data, five people, presumably Russian citizens, died,” others believed wounded, their citizenship not verified.

MZ stressed no Russian military personnel were affected. US media disinformation claims otherwise.

“There are large numbers of citizens in the conflict zones from all regions of the world, including Russia and the CIS countries. They have different reasons for being in these hot spots, including to engage in hostilities,” MZ explained.

They’re unrelated to Russian operations in Syria.

An Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) press release claimed toxic chemicals were used in East Ghouta and Idlib province last month.

Instead of investigating these alleged incidents on site, the OPCW does it by remote, using anti-Syria witnesses, including al-Qaeda-linked White Helmets, and questionable secondhand medical reports - proving nothing.

MZ: “The only acceptable criterion of truth should be the evidence collected on the site of chemical incidents. Otherwise it is impossible to determine whether chemical weapons were used at all, and if so, by whom and by what means.”

These provocations aim to discredit “the legally elected authorities of Syria.”

MZ cited State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert, saying US forces are in Syria to combat ISIS and stabilize the country.

It’s supporting ISIS and destabilizing Syria. They’re operating illegally “without the invitation of the legitimate Syrian Government or UN sanctions,” MZ stressed.

They support Kurdish YPG fighters, a US scheme “aimed at undermining Syria’s territorial integrity rather than at preserving its unity.”

Washington and Western media falsely accused Syrian and Russian operations of high crimes US and imperial terrorist foot soldiers are committing - massacring civilians, destroying Syrian infrastructure, opposing its sovereignty, seeking regime change.

Russia supports resolving years of war according to provisions of Security Council Resolution 2254.

America pays them lip service alone. Its aggression against a sovereign nation flagrantly violates them.

VISIT MY NEW WEB SITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

 
My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html