The closure of European and Arab embassies in Damascus could mean possible preparations for a foreign military intervention in Syria, Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said. A number of countries have recalled their ambassadors and announced the closure of their embassies in Syria as a sign of a protest to President Bashar al-Assad's continuing crackdown on protesters. "Right now it is possibly not a refusal from a diplomatic solution to the problem, but could be a sign that they are preparing to unleash a larger conflict," (RIA Novosti) news agency quoted Churkin as saying in an interview with Russia's NTV channel.