MOSCOW, September 14 /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is heading for Paris to attend an international ministerial conference on Iraq to be held on France’s initiative, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, representatives of Iraq and neighboring countries as well as the United Nations and the League of Arab States will gather for a representative international conference in Paris to discuss the situation in Iraq, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Moscow regards the French side’s proposal to gather for a discussion as a “timely step” designed to prepare the foundation for forming a broad consensus necessary for helping the Iraqi government and people who have encountered a never-yet-seen threat and challenge coming from radicals of the so-called “Islamic State” group, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Well-trained, well-armed and generously-funded militant units are controlling a number of regions in Iraq where they are committing grave crimes against civilians and ethnic and religious minorities.
“That is why we hope that the participants in the Paris meeting will work out effective schemes that will not only allow them to stop the “Islamic State” from spreading its influence but will make it possible to determine what concrete aid could be given to Baghdad to support its efforts to fight terrorism and remove socio-humanitarian and economic consequences caused by the crisis,” the Russian Foreign Ministry went on to say.
In the face of a large-scale threat coming from the “Islamic State”, the Iraqi leadership managed to overcome internal contradictions and come out in a united front necessary for victory over terrorists.
“Russia, in turn, will continue giving all-round assistance to Iraqi partners not only in confronting extremists but also in the restoration and development of Iraq’s economy,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said, adding that the sources of Iraqi problems caused by terrorist expansion were originating in Syria.
“This is from where these terrorists have come. It was there that they formed their gangs and learnt the necessary combat experience,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.
The ongoing military conflict in Syria that has been under way for four years; the inability of the world community and often the unwillingness of separate states to search for acceptable options of a political settlement created favorable conditions for the emergence of the “Islamic State” in Syrian territory.
“We hope that the Paris forum to be held at the level of foreign ministers will turn into a useful platform for a thoughtful and motivated exchange of views on Iraq, Syria and other regional problems,” diplomats said.