Qatar’s calls for a military solution to the Syrian crisis go against the principles of peaceful settlement agreed by Russia and the Arab League, the Russian Foreign Minister said on Tuesday.
The foreign ministers of the Arab League and Russia agreed on five principles to settle the Syrian political crisis during a meeting in Cairo on Saturday. One of those principles is that there should be "no foreign interference into Syrian affairs."
The remaining four principles are: an end to violence by all sides, that the situation in Syria should be monitored, that humanitarian aid should be provided to all Syrians and the UN special envoy Kofi Annan's mission in the country should be supported.
“It came as a surprise to me to learn upon my arrival in New York that… my colleague, the prime minister and foreign minister of Qatar, who along with me voiced those principles, had publicly called for the deployment of Arab or international forces in Syria,” Lavrov said.
Prime minister and foreign minister of Qatar, Hamad bin Jasim bin Jabir Al Thani, recently said that the crisis in Syria should be tackled by Arab and international forces.
“This is absolutely against what we had agreed and what we had announced together,” Lavrov said.
Russia supports dialogue between the Syrian government and the opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
More than 7,500 people have been killed since the uprising against Bashar al-Assad began a year ago. The government blames the violence on "terrorists and armed gangs."
