MOSCOW, June 7 (Itar-Tass) — Russia and the U.S. will hold consultations on Syria Friday, June 8, in Moscow, a spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday.
"We're holding a dialogue with the U.S. Administration as regards Syria," said Alexander Lukashevich, the spokesman. "This is normal practice."
In part, the Friday consultations will be held with Fred Hoff, the U.S. special coordinator on Syria, he said.
The main issue that he is expected to discuss with Russian diplomats is the efforts the international community might take to curb the Syrian crisis. It is an open secret that Moscow and Washington view the Syrian problem from different angles.
The U.S. insists on building up pressure on the Syrian government, while Russia abides by the principles of a political and diplomatic settlement of the situation in the framework of the plan proposed by Kofi Annan, a special envoy of the UN and the Arab League.
It is not ruled out that Hoff will step on the gas to show off the recent blood shed in the Hama district as the main argument testifying to the absence of alternatives of Bashar al-Assad's resignation.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said unambiguously in this connection many aspects of the incident in Hama resembled the carnage in Houla.
"We condemn these barbaric acts of violence, the executants of which should be brought to trial and sentenced to punishment," Alexander Lukashevich said. "There's scarcely any doubt that certain forces resort to heinous provocations in order to disrupt the Kofi Annan plan. A consolidation of efforts in the support of the plan should offer an appropriate response to this."