Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov Asserts U.S. Violated International Law in Killing Soleimani

Jan. 4, 2020 (EIRNS)—Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in a phone call with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, explained the Russian position on the U.S. assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani on Jan. 3. “Lavrov stressed that the purposeful actions of a UN member state on eliminating officials of another UN member state, especially on the territory of a third sovereign state without giving it prior notice, blatantly violate the principles of international law and should be condemned,” the Foreign Ministry said, reported TASS. “The Russian minister has pointed out that this step by the U.S. is fraught with serious consequences for peace and security in the region and that it does not aid the efforts on finding solutions to difficult issues accumulated in the Middle East.” Instead, “Moscow urges Washington to abandon unlawful forceful tactics of achieving its goals on the international arena and to resolve any issues at the negotiating table.”

The State Department readout on the phone call did not acknowledge Lavrov’s points about international law, reporting instead that Pompeo characterized the assassination as an act of self-defense and that he “made clear that the United States remains committed to de-escalation.”