Russian Foreign Ministry: Agreement on Adopting Geneva Statement as Basis for any Political Solution of Crisis in Syria

   MOSCOW,(ST)- The Tripartite meeting between Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergi Lavrov, US, State Secretary Hillary Clinton and the UN Syria Envoy Lakhdar al-Ibrahimi was concluded Yesterday by an agreement adopting the Geneva Statement as a basis of any political solution that leads to stopping the escalating violence in Syria, A Russian Foreign Ministry statement said.

The statement was issued following the three officials’ meeting on Thursday in Dublin on the sideline of the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the European Security and Cooperation Organization.

The statement added that the three parties have so far agreed on continuing contacts between representatives of the Russian and American governments with al-Ibrahimi.

Lavrov had earlier announced in a news conference following his meeting with Clinton and al-Ibrahimi, that Russia and the United States had consensus on adopting the Geneva statement as a basis for any common action regarding the crisis in Syria.

 “We had discussed the current situation in Syria, and came with a conclusion that the participants in Geneva meeting (known as the Work Group) can implement what they had agreed upon on June 30 this year,” Lavrov said.

He added that Russia and the U.S. realize their responsibility towards international stability, pointing out that both sides can do an initiative that find a mechanism to implement what had agreed on in Geneva, pointing out that al-Ibrahimi thinks that Russia and the U.S. can support him in looking for a practical step that implement Geneva statement during his talks with the Syrian government and “opposition”.

Grushko: Deployment of Patriot missiles on Turkish-Syrian borders indicates NATO’s involvement in the internal Syrian affairs

Russia’s Ambassador to NATO Alexander Grushko criticized the Western military alliance for the deployment of Patriot missiles on the Turkish-Syrian borders, stressing that the move indicates NATO’s involvement in the internal Syrian affairs.

Grushko dismissed the idea that Syria was interested in escalating tension on the border with Turkey, stressing that “the proposed deployment of US-made Patriot missile systems indicated that NATO is getting involved in the conflict.”

Grushko, who was speaking in Brussels on Friday by a TV linkup, warned against a NATO’s further involvement in the Syrian issue.

 “We see the danger of the further involvement of NATO in the developments in Syria as a result of provocations or some incidents on the Turkish-Syria border,” Grushko said.

H. Moustafa