* Russia says Assad's opponents also must be pressured
* Says ceasefire in Homs a priority
* Hopes Annan appointment will foster dialogue
MOSCOW, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Russia called on Friday for
an urgent ceasefire in the Syrian city of Homs and urged both
the government and "armed groups" to cooperate with
humanitarian relief efforts by a U.N. envoy and the
International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Foreign Ministry expressed "serious concern" about
violence in Homs and other Syrian cities and said it must end,
but maintained Moscow's position that both sides were
responsible for the bloodshed, not only President Bashar
al-Assad's government.
Russia also said humanitarian relief must not lead to
military interference, which it opposes, and reiterated
criticism of a "Friends of Syria" meeting of Western and Arab
states in Tunisia that Russia says is not sufficiently
inclusive.
Syrian government forces have been bombarding the opposition
stronghold of Homs, almost a year into a revolt against Assad
that has left thousands dead.
The Russian Foreign Ministry statement roughly echoed a
draft declaration at the Tunis meeting, which urged Syria to
cease all violence immediately, but it repeated Russia's calls
on the West and Arabs to pressure Assad's opponents to stop
fighting.
"We call on the Syrian government and armed groups, and also
those who can exert influence upon them, to immediately take all
the necessary steps to avoid the further worsening of the
humanitarian situation and to improve it," it said.
A senior Russian lawmaker who met with Assad and others in
Syria earlier this week, Alexei Pushkov, repeated the message,
saying Western and Arab support for Assad's foes is only
aggravating the violence.
"The signals are 'fight, go on, we will support you', and
therefore the casualties in Homs - the responsibility lies not
only with Assad but with Western powers and Arab governments,"
Pushkov told a news conference.
"The tragedy in Homs must stop. This concerns not only
Russia. Russia is ready to use its influence and has already
tried to use it. Influence must also come from the so-called
Friends of Syria, if they are really friends and not enemies."
The Foreign Ministry urged both sides to cooperate with the
ICRC mission and with U.N. humanitarian envoy Valerie Amos.
"The priority should be the provision of a mutual, swift
ceasefire for the removal of the wounded and injured from Homs,
and urgent measures to satisfy the pressing humanitarian needs
of residents in battle zones," the statement said.
LOOKING BACK AT LIBYA
Amos was expected to attend the meeting in Tunis, along with
representatives from the ICRC, which is trying to arrange daily
ceasefires between the Syrian authorities and opposition to
allow in humanitarian aid and evacuate wounded.
The Red Cross said Syria had not replied to its request for
a truce.
Russia also praised plans to send former U.N. Secretary
General Kofi Annan to Syria as a joint U.N.-Arab League envoy.
The Foreign Ministry said Russia hoped Annan could help
"resolve the serious political and humanitarian issues on the
basis of work with all sides" and foster a broad political
dialogue between the government and opponents.
Russia says Assad's resignation must not be a precondition
for a settlement process in Syria.
Along with China, it vetoed a Western-Arab drafted U.N.
Security Council resolution early this month that supported an
Arab League plan for Assad to step aside and placed most of the
blame for a year of violence on the government.
Russia has vocally opposed any foreign military intervention
on Syria, and Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on
Friday that Moscow hopes humanitarian relief will not lead to
such intervention, state-run Itar-Tass news agency reported.
Moscow has said creating humanitarian aid corridors could
lead to further violence and to military intervention.
Russia "fears a repeat of the Libya scenario," Bogdanov
said, referring to a NATO air strikes that helped Libyan rebels
overthrow longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi last year.
"That is why we warned our partners that the aims of the
Tunis meeting are not completely clear to us," he said, adding
that the meeting "unfortunately does not include representatives
of the entire Syrian people".
(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
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