MOSCOW, July 25./TASS/. The US has so far refrained from public comments on Moscow’s proposals to work together on the return of Syrian refugees, Russian Foreign Ministry’s Nikolai Burtsev told a session of the coordination headquarters for the return of refugees to Syria of the Russian defense and foreign ministries on Wednesday.

"Washington has so far abstained from publicly commenting on the issue of cooperation with Russia in resolving the humanitarian problems of the Syrian Arab Republic," Burtsev stated.

"There has been no reaction from the US side to a Defense Ministry statement saying it had referred proposals on the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland. We continue to seek meetings with the administration on the Syrian humanitarian matter," the diplomat said.

He said attitudes in Europe were 'mixed'. "During the Russian Embassy’s contacts with Portugal’s official representatives, the Portuguese side reported that more than 300 Syrian refugees had left the Iberian country. At present, about 400 refugees from Syria are registered in Portugal," the diplomat noted.

"Swiss government agencies said that Syrian refugees there want swift integration into Swiss society once they get refugee status, which gives them the right to employment and to the social safety net," he pointed out. "The Russian Embassy in Estonia maintains active contacts with that country’s Foreign Ministry on the issue of Syrian refugees. Prime Minister Juri Ratas has been informed about Russia’s efforts to speed up the process of returning Syrian civilians to a normal life, and our refugee initiative," Burtsev said.