MOSCOW, April 17. /TASS/. Missile strikes against Syria delivered by the United States, Great Britain and France play into the hands of extremists and delay the perspectives of the peace settlement in the Arab republic, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

"Such aggressive steps only aggravate the humanitarian situation, play into the hands of extremists and delay the perspectives for the peace settlement on the territory of long-suffering Syria," the top Russian diplomat said.

Lavrov said Russia would continue seeking that the sovereignty of Syria is respected.

"The escalation around the Syrian situation has definitely a negative impact on the whole system of international relations," Lavrov said. "Russia will continue holding its firm stance to see that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as of other countries in this region and other regions, are observed."

On April 14, the US, Great Britain and France delivered a massive missile strike against Syria without the UN Security Council’s authorization. According to the data of the Russian Foreign Ministry, the missiles hit a research center in Damascus, the headquarters of the republican guard, an air defense base, several military aerodromes and army depots.

As Russia’s Defense Ministry reported, the attack lasted from 03:42 to 05:10 local time. The Syrian air defenses shot down 71 out of 103 fired missiles. Three civilians were injured in the attack. Washington, London and Paris claimed the attack was a response to an alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria’s Douma.