Alwaght- Russia says the US, Britain and France involvement in Syrian crisis is not a "proxy war" anymore rather they have deployed so many forces into battlefield that amounts to “a direct involvement in the war.”
“There are special forces on the ground in Syria from the US – they no longer deny it – the UK, France and a number of other countries,” Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview to the Kazakh state broadcaster published on the Russian Foreign Ministry's website on Saturday.
“Thus, it’s not so much of a ‘proxy war,’ but rather a direct involvement in the war,” the Russian top diplomat said.
The US coalition is “illegitimate” from the standpoint of international law and the UN Charter, Lavrov said, adding “But we are realistic and understand that we wouldn’t fight with them. So we coordinate actions at least to prevent unintended clashes. Our military always keeps in touch with the American commanders who lead the operation on Syrian territory.”
Moscow is also in "a permanent dialogue" with the US General Staff officials “who actually lead the operation on the ground,” the minister said.
Russian top diplomat also stressed attacks on the Syrian and pro-Syrian forces in US-controlled areas deserve condemnation, given that Russia has been repeatedly and “solemnly” assured that the presence of the US military in Syria is aimed “exclusively” at fighting terrorists.
Lavrov also criticized the remarks by the US envoy to the UN, Nikki Haley, about Washington’s readiness to “bomb Damascus and even the presidential palace of Bashar Assad, regardless [of the] presence of the Russian representatives there.”“It is an absolutely irresponsible statement,” Lavrov said.
