34. Deplores, neverthe
less, the fact that Russia uses its veto in the UN Security Council (UNSC) to undermine the international community’s efforts to re
act effectively and promptly to humanitarian crises, such as the tragedy and spiralling violence in Syria; calls, therefore, on the VP/HR to put the EU's diplomatic weight and efforts into further engaging with Russia on such matters; welcomes Russia's mediation with regard to S
yria’s stockpile of chemical weapons ...[+++], along with the proposal outlined by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urging Syria to relinquish control of its chemical arsenal, and Russia's offer to assist in such an operation; regrets the fact that such mediation did not come at an earlier stage, which would have avoided the loss of thousands of lives;