Russian MFA: British accusations against Russia's actions in Syria are 'disinformation'
The official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Maria Zakharova, said in a radio interview with Govorit Moskva that the statements made by the UK about the destructive role of Russia in the Syrian conflict were “dangerous injections of disinformation”. The Secretary of the State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Philip Hammond Hammond, recently expressed the view that the actions of the Russian Air Force have worsened the internal conflict in Syria, which has in turn led to an increase in the flow of refugees and strengthened the position of the so-called Islamic State. The Kremlin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, supported Zakharova’s position and called Hammond’s statement illogical and wrong. Peskov stressed that such statements contradict the essence of the efforts made by Russia in Syria.
Russian airstrikes began in Syria in September of last year at the request of President Bashar al-Assad. Despite accusations from the West that the Russian Air Force has primarily targeted moderate opposition groups, Moscow has repeatedly insisted that its main target is the so-called Islamic State. The number of civilians reportedly killed by Russian airstrikes has increased over the last month.