MOSCOW, January 10. /TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin and Special Presidential Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentyev have discussed the situation concerning the US troop withdrawal from Syria with Senior Aide to the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Jaberi Ansari, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday,
"The parties thoroughly discussed the current situation in Syria in light of the US plans to pull troops out of the country. In this regard, they reaffirmed commitment to Syria’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity," the statement reads.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the diplomats focused on Syrian issues, including the situation "on the ground," and ways to advance the process of political settlement, particularly by launching a constitutional committee, and also touched upon a number of regional issues that are being considered by the United Nations Security Council, namely the Yemen conflict.
"The meeting’s participants paid special attention to developments in Yemen. They expressed support for United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths’s efforts aimed at resolving the conflict through political means," the statement added.
During his two-day visit to Moscow, the Iranian foreign minister’s aide also discussed the situation in Syria with Russian Deputy Defense Minister Colonel General Alexander Fomin.