On 9 June 2012 the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov gave a media briefing on Russia's initiative to convene an international conference on Syria. “The situation in Syria is becoming more and more alarming; a full-scale civil war appears imminent” he said. "We are disturbed by the external players’ reaction to Syrian events - open support for armed opposition and calls for regime change. The media often portray the actions of illegal armed groups in Syria as the heroic deeds of defenders of peaceful protesters...Responsibility for events in Syria does not lie solely with the government but also with those who finance illegal armed groups...The situation that made the terrorist attacks in Syria possible was the result of an internal conflict fuelled from outside" "Russia will not approve a UNSC resolution on military action in Syria. It would lead to desperate consequences in the Middle East, create an arc of instability from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. Many who demand Syrian intervention want to make the region a battlefield for superiority in Islamic world. It is a very dangerous trend. What happens with Syria will show the way the world is going: will the world rely on the UN Charter or the right of the strong" "Russia protects the chances for stability in the region, the Islamic world and the international law, not the regime", Mr Lavrov pointed out. Regarding the issue of Russia-Syria arms trade, the FM stressed that the Russia is not shipping arms used against the government's opponents: “We are not supplying the Syrian government with arms that even an overwrought imagination could suppose are being used against peaceful protesters...We are completing the implementation of contracts signed and pre-paid long ago on deliveries of air defense weapons that could be used only if Syria is subjected to military intervention from abroad. We are not delivering anything else,” Lavrov said. Currently, "external players are preventing Syrians from coming to an agreement, urging one side to continue with the fight. The conference on Syria proposed by Russia must do away with the negative interference from external players and get them to help stop the bloodshed. The implementation of Kofi Annan's plan is not a hopeless situation. Kofi Annan's plan remains valuable but needs to be spelled out in certain parts – this is one of the aims of the proposed conference. A mechanism is needed to ensure the non-militarisation of Syria’s cities after the withdrawal of government forces." The Russian Foreign Minister also spoke out in favour of Iran's participation in the proposed conference. Full video of the briefing can be watched at http://youtu.be/G7GZfTlsN9g
Vladimir Putin met with Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland, who is in Russia on a working visit. The meeting discussed current issues concerning Russia’s relations with the Council of Europe.
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, We have completed the main part of our negotiations with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. He will have a meeting with the President of Russia in a few hours. As always, our conversation was very substantial and honest. We are sincerely interested in the consolidation of the role of the UN. This is one of the main tasks in the Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation approved by the President Vladimir Putin on 12 February 2013.
Question: I would like to start our conversation from your last international contacts and, first of all, from your meeting with US Secretary of State in Moscow on 7 May. The day after he left Moscow, John Kerry made a statement in Rome that there is no place for President Bashar al-Assad in the new transitional government. There were also statements that the White House had not made its final decision about armament of the opposition and is waiting for the results of the investigation of the use of chemical weapons in SAR to make this decision. We know about the agreements reached between Russia and the USA in Moscow, however, we would still like to understand why we have heard other statements, which do not fit within the framework of the agreements reached the day before, as soon as the US Secretary of State left Moscow.
Question: The “Partnership for Modernisation” program is a significant element of the Russian-German dialog. What else would you like to decide within the framework of this format? How do you see next stages of its implementation? Sergey Lavrov: First of all, I would like that governments do not interfere with the cooperation of companies dealing with innovations and their industrial deployment within the framework of “Partnership for Modernisation”. Governments should know how this happens, to create a legal framework, a maximally comfortable regime for such cooperation, while professionals should decide each in its sphere. The more contacts we have within the framework of “Partnership for Modernisation”, the more weighty results we achieve in the form of final products, workplaces, additional profits of companies in Russia and Germany. I think that we share these interests, especially on the background of the most magnificent events in the world and European economy.
Dear Mr Minister, dear Guido, Dear Dr von Studnitz, Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, friends, First of all, I would like to join the welcome words addressed to participants of the ceremonial meeting and to congratulate with an anniversary – 20 years of the German-Russian Forum, to wish its leaders, all employees and members success in their further work for the benefit of peoples of our countries.
Question (addressed to US Secretary of State John Kerry and Sergey Lavrov): After your recent discussions, including on Syria and the episode of detention of a US Embassy official in Moscow on a charge of espionage, do you think that your collective work is constructive? Sergey Lavrov (answers after John Kerry): Regarding the incident of the detention of a US Embassy official in Moscow that you have mentioned, everything, that the Russian party wished to say about it, was said yesterday in the comment of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. I have nothing to add.
Dear Mr Chairman,Dear colleagues, friends, First of all, I would like to thank our Swedish hosts for their hospitality, good organization of the today’s meeting and to congratulate Mr Carl Bildt with the results that were reached by the Arctic Council under Swedish chairmanship.
Today we sign the second in history legally binding panarctic document – Agreement on Cooperation on Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response in the Arctic. This is another evidence of high responsibility of Arctic countries for the state of affairs in the region. The next is the preparation of the Agreement on Marine Oil Spill Prevention.
Question: Can you provide any specifics based on results of your conversation with US Secretary of State John Kerry regarding deadlines and place of the international conference for Syria? Does Russia consider that SAR President Bashar al-Assad should participate in it?Sergey Lavrov: There is a common understanding that the conference should be held in Geneva, where grounds for the current advancement ahead were laid by adopting the known Communiqué in June 2012.
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