Russian Deputy Foreign Minister discusses escalation in the Middle East at meeting with LAS Deputy Secretary General

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov discussed the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East at a meeting with Deputy Secretary General of the League of Arab States (LAS) Husam Zaki. This was reported in the Russian Foreign Ministry on December 2.

"During the conversation there was an in-depth exchange of views on a wide range of issues on the Middle East agenda with a focus on the escalation in Syria, the situation in Lebanon and in the zone of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," the ministry said.

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the meeting "stated the irreversibility of the settlement" of the conflict by diplomatic and political means, as well as the inadmissibility of interference in the affairs of states in the region. Bogdanov and Zaki also confirmed their intention to strengthen cooperation between Russia and Arab countries, coordinate joint development and plan activities to deepen Arab-Russian interaction.

Old things not yet forgotten: the conflict in Syria has escalated for the first time in five years

Whether there is a Western or Ukrainian trail in the escalation

Earlier, on December 2, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said after talks with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi that Ankara, Tehran and Moscow are going to hold a meeting in the Astana format on the situation in Syria in the near future. Fidan pointed out that it is very important for Damascus that the participants of the meeting sincerely express their views.

On November 28, it became known that terrorist groups carried out a major attack in Aleppo and Idlib, and the Syrian army began to repel it, causing serious damage to equipment and manpower of militants.

In turn, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi called the activation of terrorists in Syria part of the US plan against the backdrop of Israel's defeat in Lebanon. In addition, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad emphasized that the Arab republic is capable of defeating terrorists with the help of allies and friends and will do it with the language of force.

On November 27, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov positively assessed the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. He also pointed to the importance of placing Lebanese armed forces in their prescribed regions so that the Israeli army could begin a gradual withdrawal.