01:46Russia: Moscow wants political process in Syria, but will not 'flirt with terrorists' – Deputy FM
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov stated that Moscow had always called for a peaceful settlement of the Syrian conflict, speaking at the session of Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, Tuesday. However, that position was dependent on the country “maintaining its secular and multi-confessional nature rather than flirting with terrorists and extremists.”
He said that “various parties" were “hoping to get some considerable dividends in the near future” out of the situation by propping up groups loyal to them.
Bogdanov also touched on the “Arab Spring in Middle East and North Africa that began, as many then thought, from the inside, as the peoples' desire for democratisation.” However he regretted the outcome which according to him “is the terrorist threat looming over the region in the face of IS and Jabhat Al-Nusra that changed name to Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.”
The Valdai Discussion Club dates back to 2004 and was named after Lake Valdai near Veliky Novgorod, where the first meeting took place. Valdai was set up to promote dialogue between Russia and an “international intellectual elite” for “independent, unbiased scientific analysis of political, economic and social events in Russia and the world.”
01:46Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov stated that Moscow had always called for a peaceful settlement of the Syrian conflict, speaking at the session of Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, Tuesday. However, that position was dependent on the country “maintaining its secular and multi-confessional nature rather than flirting with terrorists and extremists.”
He said that “various parties" were “hoping to get some considerable dividends in the near future” out of the situation by propping up groups loyal to them.
Bogdanov also touched on the “Arab Spring in Middle East and North Africa that began, as many then thought, from the inside, as the peoples' desire for democratisation.” However he regretted the outcome which according to him “is the terrorist threat looming over the region in the face of IS and Jabhat Al-Nusra that changed name to Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.”
The Valdai Discussion Club dates back to 2004 and was named after Lake Valdai near Veliky Novgorod, where the first meeting took place. Valdai was set up to promote dialogue between Russia and an “international intellectual elite” for “independent, unbiased scientific analysis of political, economic and social events in Russia and the world.”