Russian envoy says 'counterterrorism collaboration with the US is objectively important'

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov noted that the cooling of relations between Moscow and Washington does not mean that the two nations have been collaborating on counterterrorism in vain for the past 20 years.

In an interview with Sputnik, Syromolotov said that the counterterrorism cooperation between the Russian Federation and the United States has been developing in varying degrees of intensity over the 20 years since the events of 9/11, and the current cooling of their relations does not mean that these two decades have gone in vain and to no avail, according to Sputnik.

Russian and US foreign affairs agencies were constructive

The envoy said that Moscow has consistently stated that the 2018-2019 interaction between Russian and US foreign affairs agencies was very constructive. Syromolotov also said that this discourse had every possibility to become an 'all-weather' one, unaffected by external irritants.

After the devastating 9/11 attacks, Syromolotov believes that counterterrorism collaboration with Washington is objectively important. Despite the fact that the political conversation is now stalled, counterterrorism cooperation with the US is absolutely required, as it is in line with our national interests and the responsibilities of maintaining world peace and security. He further stated that they should not require such collaboration any more than their transatlantic colleagues.

Syromolotov claimed that Washington's meddling in the affairs of Iraq, Libya, and Syria has resulted in the creation of terrorist organisations in these countries, which is a subject of considerable global worry. He stated that the major lesson that the international community should take up from the US anti-terrorism programme is that the battle against terrorism must be conducted in strict accordance with international law's norms and principles.

Syromolotov added that the United States' disdain for international law, expressed in its unlawful involvement and violation of Iraq's, Libya's, and Syria's territorial integrity, contributed to the creation of the world's most dangerous terrorist organisations in these countries.

9/11 was used for justifying the 2003 invasion of Iraq

Former US President George W. Bush invaded Afghanistan in 2001 as part of the infamous "war on terror" that followed the 9/11 terrorist attacks. According to the most recent estimate, about 47,200 Afghan civilians were killed in the war, in addition to US personnel, according to Sputnik. 9/11 was also used for justifying the 2003 invasion of Iraq, with the Bush administration asserting that Saddam Hussein was cooperating with al-Qaeda in the run-up to the war.

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