Lavrov Says Syria Opposition Will Never Defeat Assad's Army
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Syria's opposition will never defeat President Bashar Assad's army even if it is "armed to the teeth," Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying on Wednesday.
"It is clear as day that even if the Syrian opposition is armed to the teeth, it will not be able to defeat the government's army," Interfax quoted Lavrov as saying while on a visit to the ex-Soviet nation of Azerbaijan.
"Instead, there will be carnage that lasts many, many years -- mutual destruction," said Lavrov.
Russia has emerged as the Syrian regime's closest ally and has previously sought to protect its Soviet-era trade partner against Western sanctions and possible foreign military intervention.
But Moscow has stepped up its criticism of Assad in recent weeks and has backed along with Arab and Western nations the six-point peace plan put forth by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan for resolving the year-long crisis.
Lavrov said that two Syrian opposition groups will be visiting Moscow soon and that Russia will be using the meetings to convince them it wants to help end violence that the U.N. says have claimed more than 9,000 lives.
He added that Syria's foreign minister would also be coming to Moscow on April 10.
"Right now, representatives of one group of the opposition are coming (to Moscow), and a few days later a second group will come from the domestic opposition," Lavrov said without providing further details.
Russia last month said that it planned to soon host members of a moderate opposition group called the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change in Syria.
"It would make sense to convince them that we also want to help resolve this problem," the RIA Novosti news agency quoted Lavrov as saying.
Russia has also been highly critical of the so-called 'Friends of Syria' meetings that group Western powers and some Arab states.
Its latest conference last weekend in Istanbul recognized the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) as a "legitimate representative" of all Syrians.
Lavrov called the move counterproductive because it discouraged the rebels from engaging in talks.
"If besides supporting Kofi Annan's plan (nations) also hold 'Friends of Syria' meetings in Istanbul -- ones that are aimed at ensuring that the opposition does not agree to negotiations -- this only undermines efforts to stop the violence," Lavrov said.
04 April 2012, 11:34
19
... maybe...but the army will never defeat the opposition either...so what now?
04 April 2012, 22:09
00
and is time really on the regime's side? where would the economy/institutions/defections be a year from now? what would be the popular support for the regime be even amongst its staunch supporters? lavrov is actually doing the revolution a favor: if the regime is to triumph versus time does lavrov really need to plea for a deal (he is obv asking for one)? or does lavrov know that the recent gains are merely an illusion and that success in attacking people is one thing, occupation is another.
04 April 2012, 11:35
18
the title should have been: Lavrov Says Syria Opposition Will Never Defeat Assad's Army, And the assad army will never defeat the opposition :)
04 April 2012, 11:41
33
It means till death do us part. Going to be a long and hard divorce.
04 April 2012, 13:25
09
i remember the same words said by gorbatchov in 1988 about the great soviet army in afghanistan...then.....lavrov is from the same school.
04 April 2012, 15:03
07
No wonder Russia is no longer a super power, Lavrov you idiot the Syrian Army will rebel sooner or later and Join the Syrian freedom fighters.
04 April 2012, 16:51
10
So Russia is the country that the Syrian Opposition wants to see and that the Syrian government goes to see as well. See what the US - Israeli alliance has cost the US. No credibility with anyone, no one comming to Washington to get solutions and no leverage to resolve these issues. All of this is with Russia, by American default. This is the price that is paid to be Israel's friend. And then after paying that price, Israel thumbs its nose at the US and even involves itself in domestic American presidential politics trying to play one side against the other to affect the outcome best fitted to Israeli interests rather than the interests of the United States.
04 April 2012, 17:15
02
following the agreement between russia and the US, this is the agreed course to take out the syrian regime.
04 April 2012, 17:40
02
@love4bashar:dont be sorry becose very soon we will not be sorry ,the revenge will include both bashar and hassoun.
04 April 2012, 18:03
00
The bible said somewhere that syria will be in a state of civil war untill the end of the time on earth
04 April 2012, 20:25
01
With weapons and Sattelite intel for US they will. Syrian arny and not used to get fired back at.
04 April 2012, 21:43
01
I think that the title is wrong but those have been suggested are wrong too. The best title must be: Putin and Lavrov elaborate two opposition groups.
04 April 2012, 22:05
01
I see this as a plea from lavrov to reach a middle ground and save the regime before it is too late, what he did not say (and acutally inferred in his statement) is that the regime can not defeat the revolution, is time really on the regime's side in this case?..some mathematical objective facts: let's assume this drags on for another year and let us assume that the opposition forces could not "defeat" the regime like lavrov says; nevertheless, we can imagine a protracted resilient guerilla war that gets better armed/trained/efficient versus time and a regime forces' morale and control eroding. Where would the Syrian economy and government institutions be when the majority of syrian territory becomes unsafe? is the regime gaining or losing popular support versus time? Add more defections from the army to the mix..the result in the best case russian scenario is a regime technicaly alive but realisticaly dead
