Syria has warned it will take “tough measures” against any country that recognises the newly-formed opposition Syrian National Council (SNC).
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem did not give details but said the council was not legitimate.
Earlier this week, seven Syrian opposition factions announced they were joining forces to form a coalition.
Western countries have welcomed the move, but stopped short of formally recognising it.
Mr Moualem said the actions of the SNC “doesn’t concern me”, but added: “What concerns me is our stance – we will take tough measures against any state which recognises this illegitimate council.”
He was speaking at a joint news conference with ministers from five Latin American countries visiting Syria to show their support for the Assad government.
The minister did not give further details on what sanctions were being threatened.
Formation of the SNC was announced in Turkey on 3 October. Chairman Burhan Ghalioun said the body was “an independent group personifying the sovereignty of the Syrian people in their struggle for liberty” and was “open to all Syrians”.
It is not dissimilar to Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC), which earned international recognition through its opposition to the rule of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and is now leading the country’s affairs.
But although Western countries, including the United States and France, have welcomed its formation, they have not yet formally recognised it as the legal representation of the Syrian people.
Embassy protests
Mr Moualem used the news conference to blame an “armed terrorist group” for the assassination on Friday of Mishaal al-Tammo, a prominent Kurdish opposition figure who would have planned a key part in the new National Council.
Mr Tammo was a martyr who “stood against foreign intervention in Syria”, Mr Moualem said.
But both the opposition and Mr Tammo’s family accuse the regime of killing him. They also say security forces opened fire on some 50,000 mourners at his funeral on Saturday, killing six people.
And Mr Moualem also criticised Germany and Switzerland for failing to prevent Syrian missions in three cities from being attacked by protesters.
Protesters stormed Syrian diplomatic properties in the German cities of Berlin and Hamburg as well as the Syrian mission in the United Nations building in Geneva on Friday.
The foreign minister said the two countries had failed to meet their obligations to defend diplomatic missions and warned the same might happen to foreign embassies on Syrian soil.
“If they are not committed to implementing this (Geneva convention) agreement and provide security for our missions, we will treat them the same way,” he said.
