Moscow 9 Apr (ANA)- Russia has hit out at Boris Johnson's decision to scrap a planned trip to Moscow after discussions with the US. The move showed the UK has no "real influence" over world events, Russia's foreign ministry said. Mr Johnson said events in Syria had "changed the situation fundamentally" and he would go to G7 talks instead.

The UK deplored "Russia's continued defence of the Assad regime even after the chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians," he added. The foreign secretary said: "We call on Russia to do everything possible to bring about a political settlement in Syria and work with the rest of the international community to ensure that the shocking events of the last week are never repeated." Rather than travelling to Moscow to meet Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, he will now be travelling to Lucca, in Italy, for a G7 meeting, where he will call for Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull his troops from Syria. His Russian visit, which would have been the first by a UK foreign secretary in five years, was cancelled after discussions with the US, which is sending Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Moscow to deliver a "clear and co-ordinated" message to the Kremlin.

In a statement, the Russian foreign ministry said: "During Johnson's visit to Moscow there were plans to hold open and exhaustive talks on the entire spectrum of international problems, and also to discuss the state of Russo-British relations, which have, in essence, been forced into a dead end by the UK. "The decision to call off Johnson's visit to Moscow confirms once again doubts in the presence of added value in speaking to the UK, which does not have its own position on the majority of present-day issues, nor does it have real influence on the course of international affairs, as it remains 'in the shadow' of its strategic partners. "We do not feel that we need dialogue with London any more than it does." The Russian statement added that Mr Johnson's plan to "discuss Russian support for the Assad regime" with G7 partners showed a "fundamental misunderstanding or ignorance of what is happening in Syria, Russia's efforts to settle this crisis, and the purpose of diplomacy in general".

Russia and Iran have condemned US air strikes against Syria as violation of international law.(ANA)

FA/ANA/9 April 2017----