Moscow (dpa) – Russia on Tuesday said it would not take part in the forthcoming meeting of Western and Arab nations pushing for regime change in Syria but did want to see the United Nations step in to resolve the humanitarian situation in the country. Foreign Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich said the UN should send a special envoy to Syria to lead the delivery of humanitarian aid. Russia was ready to assist with aid shipments, he added, in comments published on the ministry's website. “Russia is ready to work with the UN on this in honest cooperation,” Lukashevich said. He said Russia would not attend the meeting of the so-called “Friends of Syria” conference scheduled to be held in Tunisia on Friday because representatives of the government in Damascus have not been invited. The conference, launched by France and the United States, aims to secure international support for an Arab League bid to exert pressure on the Syrian government to end its bloody crackdown on protesters calling for reforms. Damascus' main allies Russia and China vetoed a resolution condemning the Syrian regime in the UN Security Council on February 4. Russia has long opposed the efforts to condemn the government of President Bashar al-Assad, saying it would be a step towards a Libya-style military intervention to force regime change. Both the Syrian opposition and the government should reject violence, and “all parties” in the country's conflict should be present at the conference table, Lukashevich said. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/Sr6ru Tags: Change, Damascus, Regime, Russia Section: Europe, Latest News, Syria
