Russia says U.S. refusal to rebuild Syria a ploy to slow refugee return
MOSCOW - Russia will help Lebanon return refugees to neighboring Syria, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday, accusing the United States of impeding the general repatriation process by declining to assist in Syria's reconstruction.
"We agreed that Lebanon should not be the subject of foreign interference, a pawn in geopolitical games, or a hostage of the Syrian crisis and its negative consequences such as the problem of Syrian refugees," Lavrov said after talks with his visiting Lebanese counterpart, Gebran Bassil.
Lavrov accused Washington of being interested in rebuilding only parts of Syria where the opposition to Russia's ally, President Bashar Assad, was active.
