Media publications that Russia allegedly uses Syria as a springboard for the transfer of weapons and mercenaries to Libya are not supported by facts. This was announced on September 7 by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a press conference following his visit to Damascus.
Accusations are being brought against Moscow from Africa to Europe and the United States, he said. “We have never been presented with any facts,” a high-ranking TASS diplomat was quoted as saying.
The fact that such statements make their way straight into the media without engaging in mechanisms to clarify the points that provoke anxiety raises questions about the goals of their authors. As Lavrov recalled, Russia at one time supported the introduction by a special UN Security Council resolution of an arms embargo against Libya.
“We remember how a few months later, some European countries publicly, through the mouths of their general staffs, military representatives declared, without hesitation, that they supported extremists against [Муаммара] Gaddafi is supplying these extremists with weapons, ”Lavrov said.
In May, the US State Department accused Moscow of meddling in Syria and Libya.
The UN Security Council adopted a resolution on the arms embargo on Libya in 2011. After the overthrow and assassination in the same year of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, armed conflicts between various groups continue in Libya.