All news

Russia pleased with results of meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister

GENEVA, February 12, 22:38 /ITAR-TASS/. Russia is pleased with Wednesday’s meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem and hopes that the government delegation will continue the talks in Geneva in a constructive manner, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said on February 12.

“We had a constructive meeting with Muallem and the Syrian delegation. We are quite pleased with the discussions we had,” Gatilov said.

“This is a crucial moment. We are convinced that a political solution is the only way to resolve all problems in Syria in order to stop the violence, fight terrorism and create decent conditions for future prosperity of the country,” Gatilov said.

An informed diplomatic source said that the Russian delegation will meet with the head of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, Ahmad al-Jarba, in Geneva on February 13.

Gatilov doubts that the document proposed by the Syrian opposition will be discussed at a trilateral meeting between Russian, U.S. and U.N. officials on February 13.

If the document contains any addition or clarification that is “consistent with the Geneva Communique, such a document may have the right to existence,” he added.

“To us, the Geneva Communique is the basis of the negotiations, and everything is stated in it,” the diplomat said.

Gatilov said the Russian delegation had not yet seen the document proposed by the opposition. “We have not studied it yet,” he noted.

Asked how in his opinion the Syrian talks should go, Gatilov said, “We think it would be logical to move in several directions at the same time.