Russia: FM Sergey Lavrov urges western nations to stop undermining Syrian refugees' return

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday urged Western countries to stop undermining the return of Syrian refugees to their home countries by violating the UN mandate to create conditions for repatriation. According to Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, all provisions of this resolution must be followed by all, ANI reported. It is about the need for the West to stop sabotaging the requirement to create conditions for the return of refugees to Syria, Lavrov remarked following a meeting in Moscow with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican's secretary for relations with states. The Russian minister went on to criticise Western nations for failing to help rebuild Syria's infrastructure.

According to ANI, Sergey Lavrov added."The West, unfortunately, only collects money to keep these refugees in the countries where they left in the early years of the conflict, especially Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, and unwilling to do anything to rebuild the basic infrastructure for the refugees' return."

In addition, the minister called for an end to the illegal unilateral sanctions that the West continues to impose on the Syrian Arab Republic, particularly in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Syria's civil war has been raging since 2011, with President Bashar Assad's forces battling various insurgent groups. Because of the ongoing conflict, millions of citizens of the country have fled to other countries, primarily Europe, in order to save their lives. This caused a slew of humanitarian issues in various countries, including those related to the refugees' eventual repatriation as the situation in Syria improves.

Russia prepared for any provocation in relations caused by NATO's actions: Lavrov

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) maritime drills in the Black Sea are linked to Washington's goal of containing Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday during a weekly press briefing, according to Sputnik. According to the FM, the US and its allies desire to follow Russia's containment policy. This is a major violation of the Russia-NATO Founding Act. He went on to say that Russia is prepared for any provocation in relations caused by NATO's actions in the region. Lavrov's comments come just days after the United States Sixth Fleet announced a major maritime exercise in the Black Sea region. The exercise will include the deployment of the naval vessel Mount Whitney to the Black Sea in November to conduct operations with NATO allies and partners. Earlier in the day, the naval vessel and the US destroyer Porter arrived in the Georgian port of Batumi.

(With inputs from ANI)

Image: AP