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Meeting of Putin and Annan proves Russia’s support of envoy’s plan - Kremlin

Russia is for extending by the Security Council of the UN Mission on monitoring in Syria /expires on July 21 of the current year/

MOSCOW , July 17 (Itar-Tass) —— The meeting between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and the special envoy of the United Nations and the League of Arab States on Syria Kofi Annan due on Tuesday is an "evidence of political support for Annan’s peace plan Russia /endorsed in the UN Security Council presidential statement of March 21, 2042 and the Council’s resolution of April 14/, of willingness to contribute to implementation of the decisions of the ministerial meeting in Geneva on June30 to launch the settlement process in Syria, " the Kremlin’s press service told Itar-Tass.

This would be for the second time that the head of the Russian state receives Kofi Annan. The previous meeting was on March 25.

"We consider the six points’ plan of Annan as the only viable platform for settlement of Syria’s domestic problems," the press service said.

"Russia is for extending by the Security Council of the UN Mission on monitoring in Syria /expires on July 21 of the current year/,” the document reads. “In this regard, on July 11, we submitted a draft resolution. Our project is aimed at full implementation of the Geneva accords and provides, inter alia, extension of the UN Mission in Syria for another three months. However, we do not rule out expanding of the political component of tasks the Mission is facing, in the framework of which we consider it necessary to request UN observers to agree with all Syrian sides a detailed plan Syrian of synchronized cease-fire and simultaneous withdrawal of government forces and militant groups per each city where armed confrontation continues. We proceed from the need for all sides of cooperation with the UN observers, to ensure their safety as well as the unacceptability of any threats to them. The UN observers /278 military and 121 civilian monitors/ now make essentially the only objective source of information about what is happening in that country."

"An important milestone in international efforts on the Syrian issue, we believe, is the Final Communique of the Geneva meeting,” the press service said. “The major achievements of this document are: the call to all parties to the conflict to stop immediately violence and to start a political process, acceptance of responsibility of the Syrian sides for future of their country, settlement by the Syrians in a broad dialogue of all issues related to reforming of the political system. In this connection, we intend jointly with Kofi Annan to facilitate convening of the second round of the Action Group in Moscow or again in Geneva. A possibility of holding another meeting of the Group members complies with Geneva’s Final Communique.

“Our priority at this stage - the full implementation both by the Syrians, and external players of the provisions of the Annan peace plan and the Geneva Communique. Working under "similar rules" will prevent further degradation of the situation in that key country of the Middle East, and thereby will prevent the regional destabilization.

“For these purposes we work substantively with management of LAS, receive in Moscow representatives of the opposition /July 9 - the leader of the Syrian Democratic Forum Michel Kilo, July 11 - President of the Syrian National Council Abdel-baset Seyda/. We expect that the states having certain influence on the opposition groups will follow suit."