“In our contacts with partners in NATO and in the region, we are calling on them not to seek pretexts for carrying out a military scenario or to introduce initiatives such as humanitarian corridors or buffer zones,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told reporters in Moscow on Tuesday.
Moscow has always advocated a resolution to the Syrian crisis through diplomatic and political means, defying imposition of any political transition on the country.
Gatilov also called for more restraint between Turkey and Syria, following Ankara’s repeated complaints against shells and artilleries that landed on its territory.
“We believe both Syrian and Turkish authorities should exercise maximum restraint in this situation, taking into account the rising number of radicals among the Syrian opposition who can intentionally provoke conflicts on the border.”
In August, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also rejected the idea of imposing no-fly zones over Syria.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011.
The anti-Syria Western regimes have been calling on President Bashar al-Assad to step down, but Russia and China oppose the Western drive to oust the Syrian president.
On February 4, Russia and China vetoed a Western-backed draft resolution on Syria at the UN Security Council. The two countries rejected the draft as “unbalanced.” They also blocked a European-drafted UN Security Council resolution against Syria on October 5, 2011.
President Assad said on August 1 that the country is engaged in a “crucial and heroic” battle that will determine the destiny of the nation.
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