Russia stands against a West-drafted UN resolution on Syria, said Russian ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin on Monday, Xinhua reported.
"The draft resolution on Syria is completely non-objective and it envisages pressure on the Syrian authorities only," Churkin told the Russia Today television channel.
"We are afraid that the resolution could push the most radical Syrian opposition forces to more active operations to topple the government. Just because of that, we categorically do not accept the aims our Western colleagues try to attain with that resolution. We offer the alternative," the Russian diplomat said.
He stressed that the draft resolution does not contain a single word about political dialogue between the Syrian opposition and the government.
"The UN Security Council should not stay aside but it must act in a positive way," Churkin stressed.
Also on Monday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sent a message to his Syrian counterpart, Bashar al-Assad, via his envoy Mikhail Bogdanov, announced the Kremlin.
Medvedev urged Assad "to stop immediately and completely" any violence from either side.
The Kremlin also stressed that the opposition should not dodge participation in a dialogue proposed by the authorities, saying dialogue is the only way to the restoration of social order and a democratic transformation of Syria.