Given the recent developments in Syria, Russia has called for an urgent meeting of the Security Council behind closed doors, a senior Russian official at the UN wrote in a message on Telegram on Sunday night local time.

Russia has requested that the meeting be held on Monday.

Dmitry Polyansky, Russia's deputy permanent ambassador to the UN reacted strongly to the fall of Damascus to armed groups.

"Everyone, not just us, has many questions about what happened and what is happening”, Polyansky said, adding that “We are closely monitoring the situation in New York."

Polyansky further said: "We will clarify these questions and review the situation at the UN in the coming days."

Russia is the key ally of Syria and deployed its troops to the Arab country on behalf of the government in Damascus back in 2015 to deal with Daesh and al-Qaeda led groups. 

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed the need to preserve Syria's territorial integrity, independence and unity, stating that the future of Syria will be built by the Syrians.

In a statement published on the UN website on Sunday night Guterres called on Syrians to grab the opportunity and “build a stable and peaceful future". 

"The future of Syria is a matter that the Syrians will determine, and my Special Envoy is working with them to achieve this goal," the UN chief said, stressing that much work needs to be done to ensure an "orderly political transition to new institutions." 

I reiterate my call for calm and non-violence at this critical time and for the protection of the rights of all Syrians without any discrimination, he added.

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