MOSCOW, July 7 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow has urged Western nations, Persian Gulf states and Turkey to join in the effort to preserve the territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria, which is currently threatened by the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said in an interview with RIA Novosti Monday.
“We advocate the preservation of the territorial unity and independence of Iraq, Syria and other countries in the region. At the same time we call on countries in the region and the global community to consolidate efforts and opportunities to effectively counter terrorism, particularly ISIS,” the diplomat said.
Iraqi society has to set aside its internal differences in the face of the ISIS threat, according to Bogdanov.
“The Iraqi society needs to unite, understanding is needed between the leaders of the three major communities – the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds. Iraq’s friends on the International arena need to contribute to it,” Bogdanov said.
“We expect that we all – [Russia and] our Western and regional partners, Gulf states, Turkey – will unite in our common goal to help the Iraqis, and Syria as well, to defend their sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the Russian diplomat added.
ISIS, also sometimes referred to as ISIL (The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), the Russian diplomat warned might be threating the territorial integrity not only of Iraq and Syria but also of other nations in the region, as the historical term ‘The Levant’ refers to a far greater area of land.
“It is likely that the people behind this project have the appetite for [territory] outside Iraq and Syria. Among others, The Levant historically consists of territory currently within the borders of Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine,” Bogdanov added.
ISIS has been fighting in Syria against the country’s president, Bashar Assad, and launched an offensive in Iraq this June, seizing large territories of the country, with the goal of seizing Baghdad. On June 29, the group declared itself a Caliphate and announced the group’s rebranding as the Islamic State (IS).
The IS claims religious authority over all Muslims and aspires to bring much of the Muslim-inhabited world under its direct political control, beginning with nearby territory in The Levant (also known as the Eastern Mediterranean), which includes Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Kuwait, Cyprus and an area in southern Turkey.
