Medvedev: Crisis in Syria Should Be Settled by Syrians Themselves

Russia's Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev, reiterated his country's stance which calls for solving the crisis in Syrian by the Syrians themselves. Russia Today website quoted Medvedev as saying in a press conference with his French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, in Paris that Russia, unlike its foreign partners including France, believes that settling the conflict in Syria should be done by the Syrians themselves. "We don't consider that interference in the internal affairs of sovereign countries is a correct step even if we had questions about the observance of human rights," added Medvedev, indicating that these questions should be directed to both the Syrian government and opposition. He said that both sides are responsible for violence, noting that "Our mission is to persuade them to sit down around the dialogue table and reach agreement on the future of the Syrian people and not only the future of President Bashar al-Assad." The Special Envoy to the Russian President, Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Bogdanov discussed with the Syrian Ambassador in Moscow Riyad Haddad the latest developments and situation in Syria. A statement for the Russian Foreign Ministry, quoted by Russia Today TV on Tuesday said that the two sides underlined the mutual understanding of the necessity for an immediate halt to the bloodshed in Syria and move the situation into the political settlement stream through peaceful negotiations and an internal comprehensive Syrian dialogue. Bogdanov announced on Monday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is expected to meet representatives of the Syrian opposition at the National Coordination Committee next Thursday.