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Russia FM sets off on Persian Gulf countries tour to discuss Syria, oil prices

The key topics of the visit will be the regional situation, the situation in Syria and on the oil market
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov i Ilya Pitalev/TASS
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov i
© Ilya Pitalev/TASS

MOSCOW, February 1. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is on Monday starting a brief tour of the Persian Gulf countries during which he will visit the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

The key topics of the visit that will last until February 3 will be the situation in the region, in Syria and on the oil market.

In the UAE, Lavrov is due to meet with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and hold talks with his counterpart Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

While in Oman, Lavrov is scheduled to hold talks with the country’s Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers Fahd bin Mahmoud al Said and Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah.

"Abu Dhabi and Muscat stick with the balanced foreign policy course and express understanding and support for Russia’s approaches and initiatives at the United Nations platform and other international organizations," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

As for Syria, Moscow says a real chance for peace must not be missed and stresses that an important turning point has come. "We call on all the sides to join the work actively and to give up any preconditions in favor of searching for efficient ways of reaching political settlement in Syria," the ministry said.

The UAE and Oman will also discuss the oil price situation on the global market and the goal is to "reduce volatility and ensure the fair level of prices for hydrocarbons and reaching a stable balance between the demand and supply."

The member states of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC countries could meet in February to discuss the proposed oil production cuts of up to 5% by each of the countries.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry also draws attention to cooperation as part of the ministerial strategic dialogue between Russia and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf. Moscow will host the next meeting in this format in spring.

The sides will also discuss Russia’s draft concept for ensuring joint security in the Persian Gulf zone that takes into consideration such changes in the region as reaching the agreement on Iran’s nuclear program and the growing terrorist threat, the ministry said.