Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
Moscow, SANA – Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov affirmed on Tuesday that the United Nations, in the person of its Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura, has undermined for over six months the UN Security Council resolution that ordered holding inclusive intra-Syrian talks without preliminary conditions.
In a press conference with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei in Minsek, Lavrov said that there is no way out of this thing except if the national opposition and the Syrian government take the initiative to organize this dialogue, adding that “we support the holding of such meeting in Damascus. I think the Syrian government will agree to that event too.”
On the idea of holding a conference bringing together representatives of the opposition inside Syria and figures from the opposition outside the country, Lavrov said the idea of holding such a meeting is being seriously discussed by those who are inside Syria and those who are outside it.
He noted that the collected samples left “no doubt” that the toxic substances were used by militants from eastern Aleppo, adding that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) experts were requested to visit Aleppo to verify the information.
“Unfortunately, the organization’s leadership refused to do it citing security concerns, apparently under pressure from our Western colleagues,” Lavrov stressed.
He pointed out that Russia is now working on the possibility to independently deliver collected samples to the Hague, the headquarter of OPCW.
M. al-Frieh/H. Said
