The origins of the Russian embassy building in Beirut stretch back to the beginning of the last century. It became a Russian property when it was taken over by a group of ecumenical missionaries. However, it was closed at the beginning of the First World War because the Ottoman Empire, which was occupying Beirut at the time, was at war with Russia.

These days, Russian embassy diplomats in Beirut are proud of the symbolism of their storied headquarters. One of the reasons for this is because of is its notable location in a neighborhood which boasts a mixed demography, wherein Orthodox Christians, Sunnis, Shiites and Druze all live side by side. One senior embassy staff member said, “Moscow was considering moving our embassy to another area of Beirut, but that idea has been abandoned.”

It is not without political considerations that these days the Russians are focusing on the legacy of their presence in Beirut, and emphasizing the historical symbolic significance of their embassy. For with the start of the events in Syria, Russian rhetoric towards Lebanese lawmakers has become more focused on the Christian Orthodox dimension. The differences between the goals of the Christian missions in Lebanon and their Russian compatriots have begun to appear. The former used to teach Russian to young Lebanese as a means of increasing the influence of Russian culture in this country, whereas Ecumenical missionaries learned Arabic, because their goal was only to disseminate education and learning.

Moscow is retroactively using the morality of its missions to conceal its true goal: responding to the Western attack against them, which depicts the Russian stance towards the events unfolding in Syria as a moral scandal for Russian foreign policy.