'Terrorists' among Syrian Anti-Regime Protesters, Says Medvedev
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday that some Syrians protesting against Bashar Al-Assad's regime are "terrorists" and that the world should urge both sides to refrain from violence.
In an interview with the France-based news channel Euronews, Medvedev admitted the Syrian authorities had been guilty of using "disproportionate force" against protesters, but called the country a "friend" of Russia.
"It's true that we recognize that there are problems in Syria. We're aware of the disproportionate use of force, and of a large number of victims, and it's something we disapprove of," he said, according to a transcript provided by the network.
"I have addressed myself several times to President Assad on this, but I think that if we decided to address a severe message to Syria, we should do the same thing to the opposition," Medvedev continued, according to Euronews' translation.
"Those who are chanting anti-government slogans are very diverse people. Some are clearly extremists, some could even be described as terrorists," he said, distancing Moscow from the West's support for what it sees as a pro-democratic revolt.
"We are ready to back different approaches, but they should not be based on a unilateral condemnation of the actions of the government and President Assad. We should send a strong message to all the parties to the conflict," he added.
"Russia's interest in such a solution lies also in the fact that Syria is a friendly country with which we have numerous economic and political ties."
While Washington and some European capitals are seeking tough economic sanctions to pressure Assad to step down or at least to allow wholesale democratic reform, Moscow has been an obstacle with veto power in the U.N. Security Council.
France has accused Assad's forces of committing "crimes against humanity" in its crackdown, and Foreign Minister Alain Juppe met his Russian counterpart on Wednesday to urge the Kremlin to join Western calls for change.
The United Nations says 2,200 people have been killed, most of them civilians, since democracy protests flared in Syria in mid-March, another in the series of anti-government uprisings to sweep the Arab world.
Damascus blames the unrest on "armed terrorist gangs" backed by Islamists and foreign agitators.
09 September 2011, 00:18
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Russia always supports the bad guys. Whether it's Syria, Iran, North Korea, or China, they always support evil against good. Anyways Russia can say bye bye because it will NEVER HAVE any influence in the Middle East so if it thinks it can control any political outcome, it should re-think its strategy.
Yea, sure they are all terrorists!! The people in Syria are bin laden supporters right? WRONG! Why didn't he say the protestors in bahrain or libya are terrorists how come only people in syria are terrorists? How come Russia supported the Egyptian, Libyan and tunisian revolution, but not the syrian one? Clearly a bunch of BS
09 September 2011, 00:58
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is he upping his price/demand on the west to tag along? lol
09 September 2011, 01:17
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Let us assume medvedev is right why doesn't he ask his friend assad to allow independent observers to go in and report exactly what is going on.
All what we have seen so far is groups of cowards in military clothing stepping and beating their handcuffed prisoners.
09 September 2011, 01:45
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How low can one go? Is Medvedev actually saying that he has "deals" with the Syrian Assad family dictatorship and that he won't even condemn the on going Genocides not to lose these deals? Obviously the "economic" relations that he speaks of are mostly arms deals, basically selling Assad the military hardware he needs to brutally muder his own people in cold blood at any cost the Russians ask for just to stay in power. The Russians must unfortunately see they can benefit from overpriced arms deals to a desperate dictator that would pay just about anything to Russia to stay in Power and have them and their Chinese partners in crime VETO any UN chapter 7 resolution, even if that meant Assad wiping out the entire population. That's really sick!! I think with these words Medvedev may well have sealed his country's "economic ties'" fate with the new ME and the free world for a very long time to come.
09 September 2011, 01:47
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Only the worried and the regime that follows terror ways and mechanisms to force its will would deny public reporting from ground zero on terrorists or non terrorists.
09 September 2011, 02:16
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We have been hearing this song from Bashar for 6 months. Where are some pictures? His new media law should allow independent media from Russia and elsewhere to confirm this if true.
I think Marc is correct. He wants his navy base confirmed by the "transitional council", maybe gas drilling rights, and who knows what else on the world chess board.
09 September 2011, 11:03
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Russia is waiting only for the moment , Syria is just a card in her hands and they are waiting a good price to sold it , they always act
like this way , they are not and they wasn't a country of Honor i am sure that if America accept to give Georgia to Russia tomorow the russian Army will enter to Syria before Everybody and will destroy everything there !!111 l
