Russian official doesn’t rule out Syrian opposition winDecember 13, 2012 - 18:06 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A Russian official has said for the first time that the Syrian government may be defeated by opposition forces, BBC News reported. President Bashar al-Assad's forces are "losing more and more control and territory", deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Thursday, December 13. Russia was also making plans for a possible evacuation of thousands of its citizens in Syria, Mr Bogdanov said. Russia has been one of the staunchest international allies of Mr Assad's government. "Unfortunately, we cannot rule out the victory of the Syrian opposition," Mr Bogdanov said. Russia, along with China, has used its veto at the UN Security Council to block resolutions condemning the Syrian government's use of violence. Later on Thursday, Nato's Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the organisation believed the Syrian government was approaching collapse. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Pashinyan visits flood-hit region Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday, June 8 visited the disaster area in the Lori province. €3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms. Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. |