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Conflict in Syria

Kerry to fly to Moscow for talks on Tuesday - diplomatic source

Kerry told reporters on Tuesday that he will go to Moscow next week "to discuss how we can effectively move the political process forward and try to take advantage of this moment."

© EPA/MICHAEL REYNOLDS, archive

WASHINGTON, March 17. /TASS/. US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to fly to Moscow for talks on March 22, a diplomatic source told TASS on Thursday.

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Kerry’s visit to Moscow to focus on Syrian settlement — Russian Foreign Ministry

Taking into account the time difference, the top US diplomat will meet with the Russian leadership on Wednesday. The source gave no details on the possible date of Kerry’s departure from Moscow.

Kerry told reporters on Tuesday that he will go to Moscow next week "to discuss how we can effectively move the political process forward and try to take advantage of this moment."

He said the cessation of hostilities brokered by Russia and the United States is largely holding and now Syria has the best opportunity in years to put an end to the conflict by resolving it at the negotiating table. "We have reached a very important phase in this process," Kerry stressed.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kerry held a telephone conversation on Wednesday at the initiative of the US side. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said "following a request of the US Secretary of State, an agreement has been reached that John Kerry will make a working visit to Moscow next week to continue negotiations on pressing issues on the Russian-US agenda."

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