Russia rebuffs Clinton on Syria, Iran penalties

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia — Russia on Saturday soundly rejected U.S. calls for increased pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad to relinquish power. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton tried to prod Moscow into supporting U.N. action to end the crisis in Syria and she expressed hope that Congress would repeal Cold War-era trade restrictions on Russia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, after meeting Ms. Clinton on the sidelines of a meeting of Pacific Rim leaders, told reporters that Moscow is opposed to U.S.-backed penalties against the Assad government, in addition to new ones against Iran over its nuclear program, because they harm Russian commercial interests.

“Our American partners have a prevailing tendency to threaten and increase pressure, adopt ever more sanctions against Syria and against Iran,” Mr. Lavrov said. “Russia is fundamentally against this, since for resolving problems you have to engage the countries you are having issues with and not isolate them.”

“Unilateral U.S. sanctions against Syria and Iran increasingly take on an extraterritorial character, directly affecting the interests of Russian business, in particular banks,” he said. “We clearly stated that this was unacceptable, and they listened to us. What the result will be, I don’t know.”

Mrs. Clinton, who also met with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Vladivostok, had urged Moscow to reconsider its opposition to the penalties, particularly against Syria in order to convince Mr. Assad that he should agree to a political transition, according to a senior U.S. official.

Ms. Clinton told her Russian counterpart that the Security Council needed to do more to send “a strong message” to Mr. Assad, given the escalating level of violence in Syria, said the official, who was present during the meeting. Ms. Clinton made clear to Mr. Lavrov that the Security Council risks “abrogating its responsibility” if it fails to act.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the conversation was private.

Russia and China have blocked three Security Council resolutions that would have punished Syria if the Assad government did not accept a negotiated political transition. Ms. Clinton said in Beijing this past week that the U.S. was “disappointed” by the vetoes.