Russia's airstrikes in Syria "do not go beyond ISIL (ISIS), al Nusra or other terrorist groups recognized by the United Nations Security Council or Russian law," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Thursday.

Pushed to define "other terrorist groups," Lavrov said: "If it looks like a terrorist, if it acts like a terrorist, if it walks like a terrorist, if it fights like a terrorist, it's a terrorist, right?"



Lavrov was addressing reporters at the U.N. in New York Thursday, on the second day of airstrikes by Russian warplanes in Syria.

Moscow, which supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has been accused of using the strikes to target anti-Assad groups including the U.S.-backed opposition group the Free Syrian Army (FSA).

But Lavrov said Russia does not consider the FSA a terrorist group. "We believe that Free Syrian Army should be part of the political process," he said.

"The goal of our operation -- in response to the request of President Assad and on the basis of the decision granted by the Russian parliament to the Russian President in accordance with the Russian constitution -- the goal is terrorism and we are not supporting anyone against their own people. We fight terrorism," Lavrov said.

Lavrov questioned the U.S.-led coalition's legitimacy, given the mission had not received the consent of the U.N. Security Council or any "request of one of the countries on whose territories they operate."



"You cannot avoid the impression that the legal basis of the coalition activities in Syria is really flawed," he said.

"As far as I understand, the coalition announced ISIL and other associated groups as the enemy and the coalition does the same as Russia [does]. Somehow some people try to present the coalition action as leading to a political settlement and Russia fighting the same people is being perceived or presented like defending the regime. It's absolutely unfair," he said.

The foreign minister also questioned the logic of trying to topple al-Assad to further the fight against ISIS, asking whether the removal of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and Moammar Gadhafi in Libya had made those countries better places.