Putin: Moscow will not support sanctions against Syrian authorities
On the 28th of February, the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, stated that Moscow will not support new sanctions against Syrian authorities in the UN Security Council. There is a proposal before the Council to impose sanctions due to their use of chemical weapons.
As the President stated during his visit to Bishkek, such sanctions are unacceptable for Russia because, according to Vladimir Putin, they will hinder negotiations in an attempt to put an end to the long-running civil war in Syria. The UN Security Council considered the draft resolution on the proposed sanctions on Tuesday. Last week, Russia reported that it will use its veto power to prevent the approval of the draft resolution.
The United Kingdom and France submitted the draft resolution for consideration to the UN Security Council after the investigation concluded that the Syrian Air Force dropped improvised ‘barrel bombs’ containing chlorine on three opposition-controlled settlements during 2014 and 2015. The Syrian authorities led by President Bashar al-Assad deny this fact.
The investigation was conducted by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Russia, which is the main ally of the Syrian authorities, stated that the evidence revealed by the investigation is insufficient.