Syria Govt Agrees To Allow Aids Into Homs

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After several weeks of blocking aids meant for people in the rebel-held areas of Homs, the Syrian government has agreed with rebels to let humanitarian aid into the areas, according to Russian Foreign Ministry says.

“It looks like such an agreement has already been achieved. This is a good signal,” ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich told reporters in Moscow, according to Russian news agencies.

Lukashevich’s comments came after the Russian UN delegation said it opposes a UN Security Council resolution on the humanitarian situation in Syria.

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said on Wednesday that “right now we are against a Security Council resolution.” Russia said such a move was not helpful.

“To solve humanitarian problems in Syria, one needs a very hard, pragmatic and goal-focused approach,” Churkin was quoted as saying, adding that a UN resolution was “only aimed at politicising this issue”.

Lukashevich defended the decision, saying that “some governments’ attempts to artificially politicise humanitarian issues are absolutely unacceptable,” adding that they would negatively affect the dialogue between the warring factions.

Moscow has consistently backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the three-year-old civil war in which more than 130,000 people have died.

In the UN Security Council, where they hold vetoes, China and Russia have repeatedly blocked resolutions against al-Assad.

About 3000 residents have been trapped in Homs’ rebel-held enclave, suffering an acute shortage of basic supplies.