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French Senate speaker thanks Russia for humanitarian pause in Aleppo

A French lawmaker stresses the need to preserve Syria’s territorial integrity

BERNE, October 21. /TASS/. French Senate Speaker Gerard Larcher expressed his gratitude to Russia for establishing the humanitarian pause in Aleppo at a meeting with his Russian counterpart Valentina Matviyenko on the sidelines of the Association of European Senates on Thursday.

"I would like to say a few words about Mr. Putin’s decision to establish a humanitarian pause in Aleppo and your readiness to carry out this humanitarian pause for the sake of the Syrian people. I would like to thank you for this truly humanitarian idea," Larcher said.

He stressed the need to preserve Syria’s territorial integrity. "We certainly agree with President Vladimir Putin that Syria should be united and indivisible," Larcher said wondering what Russia thought about ways of ending the Syrian crisis.

Matviyenko, who is the Russian Federation Council speaker, said that holding a roundtable meeting, in which representatives of Syria’s warring parties would take part; coordination and adoption of a new constitution, which would lay down the foundation for holding the presidential elections, would be the best scenario. According to her, the Syrian authorities "are ready to follow this scenario." "A transitional period, in my view, is a trick aimed at dragging this process," the Federation Council speaker stressed.