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Middle East and North Africa

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, US Secretary of State Kerry discuss Syria

MOSCOW, January 20, 22:45 /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his US counterpart John Kerry on Monday discussed the situation around Syria in a telephone conversation, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported.

The ministry said in a statement that the discussion between Lavrov and the US secretary of state, requested by the US side, took place ahead of an international peace conference on Syria, due January 22, dubbed ‘Geneva-2.’

Fighting between Syrian government troops and rebels that broke out in 2011 has left over 100,000 dead and displaced millions, according to UN statistics.

In the Syrian civil war, Russia has backed the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, and the United States has supported Syrian opposition groups.

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Middle East and North Africa

Middle East conflict

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