Saudi Hits back at Russia Criticism on Syria Arms
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربيةSaudi Arabia has hit back at Russian criticism of its reported plans to supply shoulder-launched missiles to Syrian rebels, saying it was Moscow's support for Damascus that was prolonging the conflict.
A spokesman told the official SPA news agency late Friday that the foreign ministry had been "astonished by Russian criticism of Saudi Arabia for its support of the Syrian people".
He said it was persistent Russian backing for Syrian President Bashar Assad, and its repeated use of its veto at the U.N. Security Council, that was blocking a peaceful solution.
"This support is the principal reason for the barbarity of the Syrian regime and for the conflict dragging on for three years without hope of a settlement or of an end anytime soon to one of the most serious humanitarian crises of our time."
On Tuesday, Russia warned Saudi Arabia against supplying Syrian rebels with shoulder-launched missile launchers, saying such a move would endanger security across the Middle East and beyond.
The Russian foreign ministry said it was "deeply concerned" by news reports that Saudi Arabia was planning to buy Pakistani-made surface-to-air and anti-tank systems for Syrian rebels based in Jordan.
"If this sensitive weapon falls into the hands of extremists and terrorists who have flooded Syria, there is a great probability that in the end it will be used far from the borders of this Middle Eastern country," the ministry said.
Long-existing tensions between Russia and Saudi Arabia have intensified further as a result of the Syria conflict, with Moscow standing by Assad but Riyadh offering open support for the rebels.
Russia and Iran are Assad's last major allies in a conflict that has left an estimated 140,000 people dead since it began as a peaceful uprising in March 2011.
"Russian criticism of Saudi Arabia for its support of the Syrian people" what? damn liars...
saudi is not supporting the syrian people, it is supporting violent sectarian barbarians who kill syrians of all sects and want to establish an islamic emirate. the same saudis who never lifted a finger to help palestinians in their struggle
Saudi is the most morally bankrupt and backward country in the world. They are the scum of the arab world, and we continue to allow them to pretend they speak for and represent the region.
If anyone wants to know the root of all terrorism in the world, look no further than filthy Saudi money.
I hope Russia punishes the draconian barbaric dictatorship in Saudi Arabia. If not, they risk being turned into a humiliation. As for Al Saudi, they risk being exposed even further as lovers of head choppers and the father of the suicide bombers, church shooters, mosque blowers, as well as cannibal Islamists of Baba Amr.
I met a young Saudi lawyer who is visiting the law school I graduated from in Maine, USA. If you hope the next generation will throw these old bastards out, you might have to think again. This guy seemed very weak. But maybe that's just Arabian peninsular fashion.