Lavrov says West revisiting approach to Syrian opposition

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia believes the West is reviewing its approach toward the Syrian opposition, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Thursday, Nov 8.

“I have the impression that over the past couple of weeks the Western stance on the Syrian opposition has been changing noticeably,” he said in an interview with RIA Novosti, the daily Moskovskiye Novosti and the journal Russia in Global Affairs.

“On the one hand, there is disappointment over the failure to unite them,” he said. “On the other, I believe there is a growing concern that forces totally different from those [the West] gambled on at the outset are beginning to prevail.”

Moscow believes it is crucial to unite the opposition around the Geneva communiqué. So far, attempts have been made to unite it over “a platform of the relentless struggle against Assad to the victorious end, and that is wrong,” Lavrov said.

“Russia is continuing its unification efforts, meeting with representatives of the diverse opposition groupings to promote the idea of dialogue with the Syrian government. Although at this stage most hold to the line that negotiations with Assad are out of the question, Moscow continues to work to influence their position,” he said, RIA Novosti reported.

The Assad regime has been locked in a bloody conflict with anti-government rebel forces since March 2011. According to UN estimates, around 35,000 people have been killed since the violence began.