UNITED NATIONS, December 4. /TASS/. Russia keeps in touch with its partners in the Astana format for Syrian reconciliation, and is coordinating its stabilization efforts in the country with the Turkish and Iranian partners, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said.

"For our part, we are maintaining intensive contacts with our partners on the Astana format. We are in contact with our colleagues from Iran and Turkey at various levels, which reaffirms our shared concern about the military escalation in Aleppo and Idlib and the need to coordinate joint efforts aimed at stabilizing the situation in Syria, primarily by using the potential of the Astana format," he told a UN Security Council meeting on Syria.

In his words, "stabilization ‘on the ground’ and the restoration of lasting peace and security in the SAR [Syrian Arab Republic] is only possible by ending the illegal foreign military presence, which is carried out in violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the SAR, and by stopping the airstrikes against Syrian territory."

Units of the Jabhat al-Nusra extremist group (outlawed in Russia) staged a large-scale attack on Syria’s northern governorates early on November 27. According to the Syrian government army command, the terrorists attempted to seize a number of neighborhoods and military facilities, attacking the positions of government forces. The Syrian army launched an operation to repel the attack.

On November 30, the Syrian army command said that government forces were delivering strikes on terrorists’ positions in Aleppo. According to the Syrian defense ministry, the army had to regroup to save the lives of civilians and its troops and prepare for a counterattack.