Russia's United Nations Ambassador Vitaly Churkin is shown on a television as he speaks during a news conference.
Russia's UN ambassador says there is a real prospect of a terrorist state springing up from Syria's second-largest city Aleppo to Iraq's capital Baghdad.
Vitaly Churkin pointed to the rapid advance of al-Qaida-inspired terrorists from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, who are active in Syria and have crossed the border and captured a large swath of Iraqi territory.
He told a news conference Thursday evening that one reason Russia is supporting the Syrian government is Moscow's belief that if President Bashar Assad's government was to fall apart right now "it's the terrorists who are going to take over."
"We are trying to make sure that (ISIL) is not going to take over Damascus, which could be a real prospect under some circumstances," Churkin said.