Russia will oppose any United Nations resolutions on Syria that would open the way for Libya-type interference in the country's internal affairs.
“I will not support such a resolution even if my [Western] friends ask me to,” said Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev. “Why? Because Resolutions 1970 and 1973 have been, to put it bluntly, trampled upon by the actions of certain nations.”
Russia supported Resolution 1970, which imposed sanctions against Libya and abstained on Resolution 1973, which authorised the use of force to impose a no-fly zone over Libya. Mr. Medvedev said the West “manipulated” the two resolutions.
Syrian President Bashar Assad must be given a chance to fulfill his reform promises, instead of putting pressure on him by adopting “resolutions that are open to free interpretation,” the Russian leader told a news conference in Moscow on Wednesday.
