- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Zakharova Holds Weekly Press Briefing

© Sputnik / Go to the mediabankBriefing by Russian Foreign Office spokesperson Maria Zakharova
Briefing by Russian Foreign Office spokesperson Maria Zakharova - Sputnik International
Subscribe
The Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova is holding a weekly press-briefing in Moscow. Zakharova shares information about the ongoing operation in Syria and the ministry’s agenda for the week ahead.

US Secretary of State John Kerry's possible visit to Moscow is currently under development, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"This visit is at the stage of development. When we have more detailed and specific information, we will, of course, share it with you," Zakharova told reporters.

Turkish troops in Iraq

Moscow considers the deployment of Turkish troops to Iraq a blatant violation of international law, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"According to the reaction of some Security Council members, the Turkish military's actions came as a surprise even to its closest allies, though, due to the infamous bloc solidarity, they refrained from critical comments against Ankara, which blatantly violated international law," Zakharova told reporters.

Last week, Turkey deployed about 150 troops and 25 tanks to northern Iraq, reportedly to help train Iraqi soldiers to fight the Islamic State, also known as Daesh.

"We hope that UN Secretary General considered the situation very seriously," Zakharova said.

Turkey has violated international law standards, but NATO paid no attention.

Ankara's confirmations of alleged “ethnic cleansing” in Syria by Russia is far from the truth and unfounded, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"Ankara's leadership…said that Russia is allegedly conducting ethnic cleansing in Syria. These statements are strange to comment on because they show Turkey’s leadership is completely separated from life, from reality, and from what is really going on in the region," Zakharova said during her weekly briefing.

"These are unworthy statements and the unfounded allegations speak for themselves," Zakharova added.

"The last statements from Ankara remind me impotent rage," the spokeswoman said.

Daesh spreading

"It is necessary to stop the threat of spreading Daesh into the Region," Maria Zakharova said.

"We have to cooperate with those states who suffer from terrorist attacks," she added.

Threat of the establishment of the Islamic State (ISIL, or Daesh in Arabic) foothold in Afghanistan to destabilize the region is becoming real, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.

"Terrorists are implementing a strategy aimed at seizing territories within close proximity of the Afghan border with neighboring countries. Terrorists groups, including ISIL, have already claimed that they plan to create a bridgehead in Afghanistan to further destabilize the entire region…," Zakharova said at a news briefing.

Afghanistan remains in political and social turmoil as several militant groups take advantage of instability in the country, which has persisted since the 2001 US-led invasion.

In October, the Russian General Staff reported that the number of Daesh militants in Afghanistan had reached 3,500. The tactic employed by IS in the country is to capture new territories and recruit militants from regional terrorist groups.

US-coalition's actions in Syria

Germany and UK have joined the coalition. But the coalition is imitating combating Daesh, Zakharova said.

To figure out where the members of coalition are acting is quite hard. That's why the US-led coalition should reveal its strategy for fighting terrotism in Iraq and Syria.

“It would be good for other countries to acquaint the world with their conception of what the coalition is doing in the region,” Zakharova added.

It is obvious, that situtation in Syria is sliding to a chaos due to US-led coalition's actions in the region.

If back in 2003 the US had not begun the operation in Iraq, we would not have had the problem with Daesh today.

Su-24 black boxes decoding

Russia will share the information with international colleagues following the decoding of Su-24 black boxes, Zakharova said.

Russian Su-24 crashed in Syria on November 24. Putin stated that the plane was downed by an air-to-air missile launched by a Turkish F-16 jet over Syrian territory, falling 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) from the Turkish border. He described the Turkish attack as a "stab in the back" carried out by "accomplices of terrorists." One of the plane’s two pilots was killed by rebel gunfire from the ground after they ejected. The second pilot was rescued.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала