Russia Warns U.S. Over Troop Development In Middle East, Rivlin Warns Lebanon, Hezbollah Against Attacks

Russia Warns US Over Troop Development: Could Spark War

The Times of Israel is liveblogging Tuesday’s events as they happen.

Russia warns US troop deployment could spark war with Iran

Russia is warning the US against bolstering its troop presence in the Middle East, accusing Washington of trying to spark a war against Iran.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov looks on at the start of two days of closed-door nuclear talks in Geneva, October, 2013. (AP/Fabrice Coffrini)

“For quite a while, we have been witnessing the United States’ continuous attempts to increase political, psychological, economic and military pressure on Iran. I think that such actions are rather provocative and cannot be considered as anything other than a deliberate policy to instigate a war,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov tells reporters from Russian news agencies.

Rybakov also condemns the US for what he calls the use of “the language of direct threats,” against Iran.

On Monday, the Pentagon authorized an additional 1,000 troops to the region, after Iran threatened to ramp up uranium enrichment.

President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov urges all sides “to show restraint.”

“We would prefer not to see any steps that could introduce additional tensions in the already unstable region,” he tells journalists.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi warns all sides “not to take any actions to provoke the escalation of tension in the region, and not to open a Pandora’s box.”

Rivlin warns Lebanon, Hezbollah against attacks

President Reuven Rivlin has issued warnings against Lebanon and Hezbollah against attacking Israel at the behest of Tehran.

“We warn Hezbollah not to tie Lebanon to the Iranian agenda, and we warn Lebanon not to be used as a base for attacks against Israel,” Rivlin says at a ceremony marking the anniversary of the Second Lebanon War.

“We don’t seek war, but the IDF is girded to respond to any threat and any eventuality,” he adds.

Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terror group, is part of the Lebanese government. Some Israeli politicians have called for the IDF to treat Lebanon and Hezbollah as a single entity in any future conflict.

Earlier Tuesday, a false rocket alarm in the town of Dishon near the Lebanese border briefly raised fears. A wildfire has since broken out in the area, though there is no known connection.