MOSCOW, March 30. /TASS/. Moscow is disappointed by a stance of the Western countries that have blocked a statement on Syria’s Palmyra at the UN Security Council drafted by the Russian side, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

"We are not so much surprised and disappointed by the position of Western colleagues as puzzled by their true intentions in regard to peaceful settlement in Syria," the diplomat said.

"We thought that the delay of reaction from the Western capitals on Palmyra’s liberation was a coincidence. Now it is evident that this is part of a systematic approach," Zakharova said.

The move shows that the Western states are neither interested in liberating Syria from terrorists nor assisting the peaceful settlement nor in cultural values, she added, stressing that "geopolitical interests are behind all this."

The Russian side plans to submit to the Executive Board of the UN cultural watchdog UNESCO a draft statement on Palmyra calling to restore this monument of global civilization, Zakharova said.