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Russia hails work of U.N. mission in Syria, regrets its ending

17 August 2012 19:18 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Russia hailed the U.N. observer mission in Syria, which is to end this weekend, Russia’s foreign ministry said Friday, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

In a statement on its website, the ministry said UNSMIS (U.N. Supervision Mission in Syria) had played an important role in helping settle the conflict in Syria.

The statement said the presence of the U.N. observers, especially at the initial stage of their mission, helped decrease the violence in the conflict-torn country.

"We regret an extension of its mandate has been impossible due to the positions of some members in the U.N. Security Council," it said.

Russia urged the U.N. to maintain its presence in Syria, which would help solve the 17-month crisis within the "framework of Kofi Annan’s plan and the Geneva agreements of the Action Group of Syria," it said.

Meanwhile, Russia hoped the new UN liaison office in Syria would help the government and the opposition forces end violence and start dialogue soon, it said.

The U.N. Security Council decided Thursday not to extend the mandate of the observer mission in Syria. However, the council agreed to establish a new civilian office in Damascus to back the mediating efforts of the United Nations and the Arab League.