'Syrian rebels have obtained Stingers missiles'

Lavrov also stressed after his meeting in the Jordanian capital with Syrias defected former prime minister Riad Hijab that he planned to work with opposition groups to help end the conflict that has ravaged Syria for more than 19 months.Russia knows that the Syrian rebels have obtained 50 Stinger missiles from outside to hit (regime) jet fighters, Lavrov told reporters, according to an Arabic translation of remarks he made in Russian.Those who are supplying arms to the opposition are delivering systems that are not intended for defence. There is confirmed information that on Syrian territory there are over 50 Stingers, he said, as later quoted by Russias Interfax news agency.You know perfectly well what Stingers are intended for, all the more so that the leaders of the (rebel) Syrian Free Army have repeatedly said that civilian planes will be a legitimate target.Russian chief of staff General Nikolai Makarov in October said Syrian rebels had obtained shoulder-launched missile systems, including Stingers, made by the United States, but added it was not clear who had delivered the weapons.At the time the United States vehemently denied it had supplied the rebels with any lethal weapons.The first inkling that the rebels had access to shoulder-launched weapons came in July when US broadcaster NBC News reported that the FSA had obtained two dozen Stingers, also known as MANPADS, delivered via Turkey.Lavrov, speaking Tuesday at a joint news conference with Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh, said he had stressed in his talks with ex-premier Hijab, who defected to Jordan in August, the need to ensure that no party exploits the situation to achieve military gain on the ground.I have met with Hijab and the goal of the meeting was to find a mechanism to stop the violence in Syria and save Syrian lives, Lavrov said.Hijab was ready to listen to us and we will work with him and other Syrian parties.