Zasypkin: Why Should We Ask Hizbullah Fighters to Withdraw from Syria and Not Others?
Russian ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin stressed that since the eruption of the conflict in Syria, Moscow had supported Lebanon's policy of disassociation, reported As Safir newspaper on Saturday.
He asked: “Why should we ask Hizbullah to withdraw its fighters from Syria when two years ago our calls on armed groups from northern Lebanon to withdraw was left unheeded?”
“Moscow backed the policy of disassociation at a time when armed groups from northern Lebanon were involved in the conflict,” he remarked.
“Russia backed the United Nations' Security Council's support for the Baabda Declaration,” he added.
Moreover, Zasypkin said that Hizbullah got involved in Syria after the armed groups' intervention, noting: “We supported the policy of disassociation in order to avert any escalation in Lebanon.”
“We are continuing on demanding that the Baabda Declaration be implemented and respected by all powers,” he stated.
“A real war is taking place in Syria and we want stability in Lebanon,” stressed the ambassador.
In addition, he warned that the arrival of extremists to power in Syria “is the most dangerous development that may happen to Lebanon.”
“Their assumption of any position will mark the beginning of their expansion in all directions, because extremists seek to expand their power,” he explained.
Addressing the turbulent security situation in Lebanon, Zasypkin said: “We are aware that terrorist attacks are happening in Lebanon from time to time and we cannot explain them.”
“We believe however that some Lebanese authorities, with the support of the international community, can overcome these problems,” he continued.
“We combat terrorism wherever it may be and we combat all who support terrorists,” stressed the ambassador to As Safir.
Unanimously adopted during a national dialogue session in June 2012, the Baabda Declaration calls for keeping Lebanon away from the conflict in Syria.
Some Lebanese groups, including Hizbullah and Islamists from northern Lebanon, have been involved in the unrest.
The Islamists back the Syrian rebels, while Hizbullah supports the Syrian regime.
Last year, at least 14 Salafists, who mostly hail from northern Lebanon, were killed on November 30, 2012 in an ambush carried out by Syrian regime forces as they infiltrated the town of Tall Kalakh to fight alongside the Free Syrian Army.
President Michel Suleiman has repeatedly urged all Lebanese factions to avoid fighting in Syria and adhere to the Baabda Declaration in order to avoid the spread of the conflict to Lebanon.
Hizbullah has justified its fighting Syria by saying that it is protecting holy religious sites and takfiri extremists in the country.
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