Russia: US pursuit of Iran dangerous to Middle East
“The increased tensions in the region are a direct result of the anti-Iranian policy pursued by the US and some of its allies,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
By TOVAH LAZAROFFRussian Foreign Minister Lavrov attends his annual news conference in Moscow(photo credit: SERGEI KARPUKHIN/REUTERS)
Russia warned that the US could ignite the Middle East with its dogged focus on Iran and hinted that Israel was also responsible for regional unrest.“The increased tensions in the region are a direct result of the anti-Iranian policy pursued by the US and some of its allies,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Argumenty i Fakty, published Wednesday.Some of the salient quotes were translated into English by the Russian Embassy in Israel.“The US is flexing muscles, blames Iran for all sins. This creates a dangerous situation: it can only take one match to light a fire," Lavrov said.He spoke less than one month after Israel worked to create a united front against Iran in Syria during an important trilateral meeting between Israel, Russia and the US that was held in Jerusalem.Lavrov clarified that “relations with Iran, Israel, as well as other states of the Middle East are valuable to Russia. Our foreign policy is multi-pronged, we don't "ally" against anybody. We guide our partners towards peaceful solutions to problems.”During the interview he bashed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for making a comparison between European appeasement of Nazi Germany prior to World War II with Europe’s actions with regard to Iran.“It's inappropriate to compare Europe in the 1930s with the modern regional reality. Chamberlain, Daladier tried to “pacify” Hitler, send its military machine to the USSR. Nothing like this is seen now. Iran regularly confirms its interest in regional stability,” Lavrov said.
