June 14, 2012 - 14:26 AMT
Western, Arab countries want to disrupt peace plan – Syria envoy

Western and Arab countries continue to supply arms to Syria in attempts to destroy a peace plan backed by UN and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan, Syrian Ambassador to Russia Riyad Haddad said on Thursday, June 14.

“Some western countries, including France and Arab states, are doing everything to disrupt Annan’s peace plan…They continue to arm and fund terrorist groups,” RIA Novosti quoted Haddad as saying.

The diplomat’s statement comes amid a new wave of Russian-U.S. tensions over Syria that have mounted after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton claimed that Russia was supplying attack helicopters to Syria.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday denied the allegations, saying that Moscow was “completing the implementation of contracts that were signed and paid for a long time ago” and adding that the contracts "concern exclusively anti-aircraft defense.”