Lukashevich: Russian Initiatives on Syria Opposed by West, USA

MOSCOW,(ST)_ “Some Russian initiatives on Syria received stiff opposition from the West, especially the USA,” said  the spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry  Alexander Lukashevich .

In a press conference on Thursday, the Russian spokesman regretted that “Western countries worked  in several  statements it launched to distort the Russian position toward Syria,” pointing in particular to the  statements made by the  U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, that can be only described as  “trying to overthrow everything upside on its head. “

He continued  that  after agreement on the Geneva statement  on June 30 last year, Russia  submitted an initiative to adopt the document in the Security Council, according to what was agreed upon unanimously, but the  Russian offer  was  collided with strong opposition by Western countries,  led by the USA.

He added that Moscow is confident that there is an urgent need to quick collective steps towards halting violence in Syria and searching for a compromise allowing all parties to the conflict to sit at the table of dialogue.

“Russia is ready to discuss all issues related to the translation of the Geneva statement  on the ground, including the obligations of external players,” he said, adding “to achieve this,   we consider it appropriate to continue discussions within the framework of Geneva  working group “.

T.F