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  SPIEGEL Interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov: "Everyone Ought to Stop Demonizing Russia"

SPIEGEL Interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "Everyone Ought to Stop Demonizing Russia"

Part 2: Syria and Iran should be convinced to engage in dialogue

SPIEGEL: America is embarking on a tougher course against Iran. How would Russia react if the United States were to attack Tehran militarily?

Lavrov: Violence leads to dead ends. Iraq, Lebanon and Somalia are examples of how this can happen. In the end, the problems only get worse. In the case of Iran, we have a clear decision on sanctions that was made by the Group of Six and ratified by the Security Council. This corresponds to Article 41 of the UN Charter, which states that sanctions are possible but clearly rules out violence.

SPIEGEL: Your reference to the crisis regions of Iran, Iraq and Somalia sounds as if you wanted to say: The world would be in better shape now if it had listened to Russia.

Lavrov: We do want people to listen to us. The crises in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine all point to the same thing: All influential players must be included. If someone has questions for Iran, Syria or Belarus, sanctions shouldn't be imposed on these countries. Instead, they should be convinced to engage in a dialogue. Palestine now faces the prospect of civil war. We and the EU support the attempts by Hamas and Fatah to form a government of national unity. But others believe that they must support one of the conflicting parties and isolate the other. The outcome of this cannot be good. The same applies to Iraq. It will be impossible to achieve anything without including Syria and Iran.

SPIEGEL: Do you believe the President Bush can even achieve a stabilization of Iraq anymore?

Lavrov: The situation there is truly difficult. But we are not interested in assigning blame over who was right four years ago and who was wrong. We will all suffer if we cannot achieve stability in Iraq. For this reason, and to prevent a civil world and partition of the country, we have been proposing, for the last three years, an Iraq conference that would involve the so-called patriotic opposition and all neighboring countries. The consequences would in fact be catastrophic if the multinational forces were withdrawn overnight. But the Iraqis must also be clearly informed about the stages in which foreign troops will be withdrawn.

SPIEGEL: The conflict is already spreading. A front of Sunni Arab countries has already formed against Shiite Iran.

Lavrov: The attempt to mobilize other Islamic movements against Iran is a dangerous provocation. Iran is an old country ...

SPIEGEL: ... that is in the process of acquiring nuclear weapons.

Lavrov: So far there is no unequivocal proof that a military nuclear program exists in Iran. The UN Security Council has its position, and the Vienna-based atomic energy agency (IAEA) has five or six questions to which the Iranians must respond. The IAEA's final assessment of the situation depends on this response, and we also insist on it.

SPIEGEL: Chancellor Merkel has taken a significantly more critical stance toward Russia than her predecessor (Gerhard) Schröder. What are you doing to set aside Merkel's concerns?

Lavrov: We don't see it that way. We do not believe that Germany is stepping back from its partnership with Russia. Just as I was in contact with (former Foreign) Minister (Joschka) Fisher in the past, I am now in touch with my counterpart, (Frank-Walter) Steinmeier. Perhaps Fischer was more of a philosopher, and Steinmeier more of a pragmatist. But this doesn't mean that Germany's policies toward Russia have to change.

SPIEGEL: Does it trouble you that Steinmeier only recently distanced himself from Schröder's statement that Putin is a "flawless democrat?"

Lavrov: People are different. One shouldn't use statements of one kind or another to provoke a dispute between politicians. We are completely straightforward in our dealings with our German friends.

SPIEGEL: Mr. Minister, we thank you for this interview.

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