Russia admits it sends weapons to Assad regime

Following a growing number of media reports that Russia had escalated its military presence in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov finally admitted Thursday that the country was sending military cargo to Syria in accordance to past contacts signed between Moscow and Damascus. Lavrov said the Russian airplanes, which were denied passage through Bulgarian airspace, were transporting both military equipment and humanitarian aid to the war-torn country. During a press conference in Moscow Lavrov said that Russia had taken any further steps in order to boost its military presence in Syria, adding that: “Russian military experts were working in Syria and assisting the Assad military machine to operate Russian equipment”. The Kremlin had earlier denied to comment on statements made to Reuters by two US officials in Lebanon who claimed Russian forces had started to actively participate on the side of the Syrian army. The west and Gulf countries fear Russia’s increased support to the Assad regime, while the Kremlin argues its military support to the official Syrian government is within the context of international law. Kremlin representative Dmitry Peskov said the threat by the Islamic State (IS) is evident, adding that the only capable force of resisting ISIS was the Syrian armed forces. Peskov pointed out that no meeting between US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin had been scheduled on the matter.