MOSCOW, March 19. /TASS/: The United States finds annoying the Russian-Turkish agreements on Syria’s Idlib and looks ready to use any pretext for upsetting a political settlement in that country, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a news briefing on Thursday in the wake of growing contacts between senior US officials and ringleaders of the pseudo-humanitarian organization White Helmets operating in Syria.
"One has an impression that the very thought the Russian-Turkish agreement may be implemented, the very idea of the Idlib zone of de-escalation annoys Washington so much that it is prepared to use any pretext for fanning anti-Russian hysteria and upsetting a political settlement in Syria," she said. In a situation like this the White Helmets, whom the United States has promised to support - financially, organizationally and politically - have no option left other than to strictly follow the instructions of their patrons and show they are worth the political expectations their sponsors pin on them."
Zakharova recalled that the White Helmets’ contacts with their Western handlers as a rule entailed tragic events in the region.
"One has an impression that they get direct instructions what subversive actions they should take and receive financial support as well. This is very dangerous," Zakharova said. "It is already clear to one and all who had created them and what for, who continues to support this organization, whose chief aim is to create a false information environment for the purpose of carrying out external intervention in Syria’s internal affairs to suit the political interests of the masterminds."
Zakharova recalled that on March 17 the White Helmets’ chief was received by US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun, although the Department of State earlier introduced restrictions on contacts with foreigners amid the spread of the coronavirus. On March 11, the chief of the White Helmets was allowed to speak in the US Senate. Also, on March 3, US Special Representative for Syria James Jeffrey and the United States’ UN Ambassador Kelly Craft had contacts with members of that organization on the Turkish-Syrian border.
"The aforesaid meetings took place amid an irresponsible anti-Russian media campaign, which Washington had launched over the situation in the Idlib zone of de-escalation, being controlled by the terrorist organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, outlawed in Russia," Zakharova said. "Astoundingly, the White Helmets, which position themselves exclusively as a humanitarian organization, have once again become central to Western media manipulations, aimed at discrediting the real state of affairs in Idlib. The main purpose is to discredit the anti-terrorist efforts of the Syrian government and blame the humanitarian situation in the northwest of the country on Damascus and its allies.".
