Russia Won’t Support UN Resolution on Assad Departure, IFX Says
Russia won’t support a United Nations Security Council resolution proposed by Arab and Western countries that calls on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to cede power, Interfax reported, citing Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov.
“This document isn’t balanced and it opens the door to intervention in Syrian affairs,” Gatilov said, according to the news service. The latest draft resolution proposed by the West isn’t fundamentally different to an October resolution on Syria vetoed by Russia, and “obviously can’t be supported by us,” he said.
Countries including Qatar, the U.K. and the U.S. revised their proposed UN Security Council resolution in a bid to overcome Russian objections, with a call for Assad to transfer power to a deputy. Previous language, which urged Assad to relinquish power to pave way for elections, was replaced with a call for him to hand over “full authority” to his deputy and for the “formation of a national unity government,” according to the draft obtained by Bloomberg News.
To contact the reporter on this story: Henry Meyer in Moscow at hmeyer4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net
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