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Middle East and North Africa

RF planning contacts with Syrian opposition

Lavrov said, “Our contacts are planning in the week next ensuing"

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

GENEVA, June 30 (Itar-Tass) — Russia is planning to have contacts with the Syrian opposition in the week next ensuing, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

Speaking at the Geneva conference on Syria on Saturday, Lavrov said, “Our contacts are planning in the week next ensuing. We clearly understand the ideas that they follow. But when we tell someone we call on you to observe ceasefire, they say certain countries tell us the contrary – don’t surrender arms and ‘the rest of the world will not help you’.”

“We do not justify the Syrian regime’s actions. It’s this regime that assumes responsibility for security in the country. The regime serious lags reforms,” the Russian foreign minister stressed.

“We will do our best to convince the Syrian government to fulfil its obligations under the Kofi Annan Plan. We will also do our best other external players to make them to influence the Syrian opposition, including the Syrian Liberation Army,” Lavrov pointed out.

The minister noted: “Certain states wanted the Annan mission to fail. The LAS mission was artificially wrecked. This was a colossal mistake.”

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