Russia’s foreign minister has slammed as “inadmissible” Israel’s airstrikes on Syria, underlining the need for respecting the sovereignty of the Arab country.

In an interview with Egypt’s al-Ahram newspaper on Saturday, Sergei Lavrov said Moscow’s stance on the inadmissibility of Israeli shelling of Syria’s territory has not changed.

“Our principled stance concerning shelling Syria’s territory has remained unchanged. We have always clearly expressed our attitude to that. We proceed from the need for strict respect for Syria’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity,” Lavrov said.

“We are opposed to turning the country’s territory into a scene of armed standoff between various regional players,” Lavrov said when asked to comment on remarks by some political analysts about softening Moscow’s stance on Israeli shelling of Syria.

The top Russian diplomat said, “During our contacts with all parties concerned, we highlight the importance of preventing an upsurge in tensions and the dangerous escalation of the situation in Syria, which are fraught with negative consequences for both neighboring countries and the Middle East region in general.”