Since the start of the uprising in Syria, Russia has been heavily criticized for blocking US attempts to sort out the conflict. But as Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told RT in an exclusive interview, Russia is “not in the business of regime change.”
Lavrov believes that West governments, which tend to pursue immediate intervention, have missed many opportunities to actually help end the conflict in Syria. This is as Russia made several bids to find a peaceful solution for the violence, but was undermined by those unwilling to respect the agreements.“Some of the regional players were suggesting to us: ‘Why don't you tell President Assad to leave? We will arrange for some safe haven for him,’” Lavrov revealed, adding that if indeed those who suggested this had this in mind, they should have taken it directly to Assad.“Why shall they use us as a postman? If President Assad is interested – this must be discussed directly with him,” he stressed.Lavrov also commented on why NATO was so eager to deploy Patriot missiles on Turkey's border with Syria – and which country was the actual target.While many analysts say the Patriot system's deployment in Turkey suggests that it could be targeted at Iran, Lavrov confirmed that “the configuration as it is being presented in the media really looks like it could be used against Iran.”Stay tuned for the full interview with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday, December 24.
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