British draft of UN SC resolution on Syria tactical move to justify military operation,says Pushkov

The draft of a UN Security Council resolution on Syria prepared by the UK is a tactical move to justify a military operation against the country, Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Head Alexei Pushkov said.

“London and Washington said that they wanted to “fully legitimatize” the carrying out of a military strike against Syria. If [British Prime Minister David] Cameron proposes that such a resolution be passed by the Security Council, this is a tactical move. They have guessed the results of their proposal, nevertheless, the mere act of addressing the Security Council is important for them,” Pushkov told Interfax on Wednesday.

The essence of London’s initiative is to begin a military operation against Syria and refer to the fact that an attempt to raise the issue with the UN Security Council had been made, Pushkov said.

“They want to show that they will not ignore the UN Security Council. It is even possible to predict the situation’s further development. If the resolution proposed by London is rejected, the United States and the United Kingdom will insist that they are certain that they are correct and that it is necessary to strike Syria,” Pushkov said.

Meanwhile,Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said he regretted the decision to cancel talks that would have been “especially helpful right now, when military action is hanging over this country.”

However,Russia warned earlier Tuesday that US military intervention in Syria could have “catastrophic consequences” for the region and called on the international community to show “prudence” over the crisis.

Russia’s top diplomat disagreed with his US counterpart in a phone conversation about the situation in Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported Tuesday.

“Lavrov … rejected such an assessment and cited relevant arguments on the Russian side,” the statement said.

Sources:Voice of Russia, AFP, RIA, The Guardian

M.D