MOSCOW. Aug 8 (Interfax) - The Western media reports on the alleged Saudi proposition to buy up to $15 billion worth of Russian armaments in exchange for lesser support of the Bashar al-Assad regime aim to discredit the Russian position on the Syrian issue, Director of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Oriental Studies Vitaly Naumkin said.
"Obviously, these reports are deliberate. They aim either to influence the position of the Syrian authorities or, most probably, discredit Russia, to cast doubt on the seriousness and argumentativeness of the Russian position on Syria and to create an impression that Russia may change its mind in exchange for the Saudi offers," Naumkin told Interfax on Thursday.
There have been similar media reports before, the expert said. "We have witnessed such attempts earlier. For instance, there have been false reports alleging the possibility of large acquisitions of Russian weaponry in exchange for an alternation of Moscow's position on Iran. They have nothing to do with the reality. Diplomats do not act this way; this is not marketplace bargaining, after all," he said.
The media reported on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia had offered Russia a large arms deal in exchange for its lesser support to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The media sources claimed that the proposition had been allegedly made by Saudi intelligence service chief Prince Bandar bin Sultan at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week.