"I Have More Leeway Now.
Oh, and Death to America!"
Posted on 11/16/2015 12:07:18 PM PST by SunkenCiv
Russia says it does not define Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, which may impact international efforts to deal with terror attacks.
Hezbollah has suffered huge losses in the fighting in Syria, with hundred of its fighters killed or wounded.
Russia does not consider Hezbollah to be a terrorist organization, according to Moscow's deputy foreign minister, Mikhail Bogdanov.
The official was quoted Sunday by the Interfax news agency as he explained that Russia maintains ties with the group.
"Some say Hezbollah is a terrorist organization," Bogdanov said. "We maintain contacts and relations with them because we do not consider them a terrorist organization.
"They have never committed any terrorist acts on Russian soil. Hezbollah was elected by Lebanese citizens to the Lebanese parliament. There are cabinet members and ministers from Hezbollah in Lebanon. It is a legitimate sociopolitical force."
The remarks emerged during discussions on Saturday between nations discussing which groups fighting the Syrian civil war should be defined as terrorists or not. The question arose and to which groups should be invited to negotiate for a political settlement, but differences remain between the views of Moscow and Washington.
Participants at the talks on Syria, held in Vienna, appointed Jordan as coordinator of efforts to compile a list of terrorist groups. Although both the United States and the European Union have designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization -- as has Israel -- Russia does not.
The unwillingness of Russia to acknowledge Hezbollah's terrorist status is likely to impact any international effort to address the group's terrorist activities and attacks on Israel or anywhere else.
Hezbollah has also in the past been reportedly involved in drug sales operations that cross Israel's northern border and elsewhere in the world as well.
(Excerpt) Read more at jewishpress.com ...
"I Have More Leeway Now.
Oh, and Death to America!"
By contrast, Zero, Lurch, and Plugs merely believe it but don't say it aloud.
Well, actually, yeah it is.
That’s crazy. I guess Russia is okay with terror attacks on Israel so long as the perps don’t attack Russian interests? Shame on them!!!!!!!
Russia errs greatly in their assignment of legitimacy theory. It is selective judgment based on the good old “What’s in it for me” theory. It has elements of the same mistake they made when they signed an agreement with Hitler back when they thought Hitler would not attack them — and besides, they were going to gain some benefit from Hitler’s evil themselves. Ah, but it backfired supremely, didn’t it?
Russia is a better country than it used to be. Some foolishness and blindness still remains strong. Shame on them for defining legitimacy as “If the people choose terrorism, then it is legitimate.” One day that will sucker punch them again.
I can’t wait until Hezbollah bites Russia in the ass.
There are things we can agree on and some we don’t. So let’s bomb the hell out of ISIS.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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Russia doesn't consider Hizbollah a terror group because they're an ally. Obama doesn't consider the Muslim Brotherhood a terror group.
Agree on your points. Russia still has a streak of anti-Semitism that predates the Bolsheviks. The Protocols of Zion thing still rattles in the Russian closet from time to time.
Same here.
It wasn't Russia's Marine barracks that got bombed.
It was not, in fact I suspect Putin was pleased at the time.
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