Russia's Lavrov says hopes Syria strikes won't irreparably hurt US ties

MOSCOW, April 7 (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday he hoped U.S. missile strikes on Syria would not irreparably damage relations between Moscow and Washington.

"This is an act of aggression, on an absolutely made-up pretext," Lavrov told a news conference in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. "It reminds me of the situation in 2003 when the United States and Britain, along with some of their allies, attacked Iraq."

He said Russia would demand Washington explain why it conducted the strikes.

"I hope this provocation will not lead to irreparable damage (to U.S.-Russian ties)," Lavrov said.

No Russian servicemen were known to have been killed in the U.S. strikes, he added. (Reporting by Sujata Rao; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

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