U.S. Welcomes Election of Syrian Rebel PM while Russia Expresses 'Deep Regret'

The United States on Tuesday welcomed the election of a long-time Texas resident as the Syrian rebel prime minister, voicing hopes he can foster "unity and cohesion among the opposition”, as Russia expressed that it “deeply regrets” this step.

U.S. officials "know and respect" Ghassan Hitto from his work with the Syrian coalition on humanitarian efforts in Syria, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.

Citing "privacy concerns," she refused to confirm Hitto was a U.S. citizen, however, saying only that "he spent about 25 years in Texas" and was educated at Purdue University in Indiana.

"This is an individual who, out of concern for the Syrian people, left a very successful life in Texas to go and work on humanitarian relief for the people of his home country," Nuland said.

"We got to know him when he went back to Turkey and started leading the Syrian opposition's direct relief effort and most recently as head of the coalition's assistance," she said.

Meanwhile, Russia's foreign ministry said that it deeply regretted the election of Syria's rebel prime minister Ghassan Hitto fearing that his appointment would heighten instability in the war-torn country.

"In Moscow we learned of this step by the National Coalition with deep regret," the ministry said in a comment published on its website and attributed to its official spokesman Alexander Lukashevich.

"The decision taken in Istanbul can only deepen the state of internal instability in Syria. It increases the possibility of the country's falling apart, leaving by the wayside not only those who support the acting legal government but also those opposition structures that are not part of the Coalition," the ministry said.

Hitto was chosen early Tuesday by a majority of the main opposition National Coalition members, after hours of closed-door consultations in Istanbul.

The 50-year-old will be tasked with setting up an interim government which would be based in rebel-held territory in Syria.

The election comes some two months after coalition chief Ahmad Moaz al-Khatib proposed talks with regime officials with conditions, including that some 160,000 detainees be released.

Several coalition members told Agence France Presse the election of an interim rebel premier and the establishment of a government canceled out the possibility of talks with the regime.

Hitto said in his first speech laying out the opposition government's priorities that he will not enter into dialogue with the regime of President Bashar Assad.