MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday that Moscow was concerned about possible US aid to the Syrian opposition, including military training and supplies of man-portable surface-to-air missiles.
US media earlier cited White House sources claiming that President Barack Obama was about to approve a new aid program to strengthen moderate Syrian rebels.
“We are worried by the information that these measures may include military aid to the opposition, training of militants and US readiness to withdraw objections against the delivery of portable air defense systems,” Russia’s top diplomat said.
Lavrov said delivery of the missiles “may create serious threats to civil aviation in the region and possibly beyond its borders.”
He said however, that Russia will wait until Washington makes any public statements on the issue.
Lavrov said he plans to discuss the Syrian crisis in a phone conversation with US Secretary of State John Kerry later in the day.
“I am supposed to hold a phone conversation with John Kerry who wants to discuss the Syrian problem among different other issues,” Lavrov said.
The civil war in Syria broke out in 2011, following the unrest that swept the Arab world three years ago, known as the Arab Spring. The war has since claimed up to 130,000 lives.
