All news

Russian diplomat discusses situation in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen with Iranian envoy

The meeting was held at the request of the Iranian diplomat

MOSCOW, January 10. /TASS/. Russia’s Special Presidential Envoy for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov and Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali discussed the latest developments in the Middle East at their meeting on Friday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"During their talk, the sides discussed the essential issues of the Middle East agenda with the emphasis on the situation developing in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen. The sides stressed the importance of active efforts by all the involved parties in de-escalating the situation in the region," the statement says.

At the same time, "the sides reiterated the persistent course of Moscow and Tehran towards continuing effective interaction in regional affairs, including within the Astana format on Syria," according to the statement.

The meeting was held at the request of the Iranian diplomat, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.

The situation in the Middle East deteriorated sharply overnight to January 3 when a US airstrike killed Commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (the elite wing of the Iranian military) General Qasem Soleimani near Baghdad Airport. Iran retaliated overnight to January 8 with missile strikes against two military facilities housing US forces in Iraq: the Al Asad base and Irbil Airport.