KYIV: Ukraine said Monday that Russia and Iran bear ultimate responsibility for intensified fighting in Syria where forces and allies have seized swathes of government-controlled territory.

Both Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2022, and Iran have long backed President Bashar al-Assad and say they will help his forces fight back after Aleppo, Syria’s second city, fell out of government control.

“Syria state is going through a new dangerous stage of the war, which could lead to unpredictable consequences for regional peace and security,” the Ukrainian foreign ministry said.

US blames Assad’s reliance on Russia, Iran for loss of Aleppo control

“It is Moscow and Tehran that bear the main responsibility for the degradation of the security situation in Syria,” it said in a statement, adding that Assad’s rule was also to blame for Syrians’ “suffering and hardships.”

Kyiv in the statement hit out at Assad for recognising the Russian annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, and said Ukrainians were also being targeted on a nightly basis by Iranian-designed drones.

“The Russian dictator Putin and his allies in Iran continue to make every effort not to lose control over the puppet Syrian regime, which is associated by the majority of Syrians with inhuman cruelty, tyranny and crimes,” the statement said.

Kyiv called for the territorial integrity of Syria to be respected and called for an end to the long-running conflict as soon as possible.