MONTREUX, January 22. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia expects all third parties to encourage Syrians towards achievement of a consensus and restrain them of attempts to predetermine final agreements, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated on Wednesday in his address to the international conference on Syrian peaceful settlement Geneva II.

“We expect that all third parties would encourage Syrians towards achievement of a consensus, refrain and restrain the parties of attempts to predetermine final agreements, and from other steps that may ruin the negotiation process,” Lavrov stressed.

 

Lavrov suggests to involve Syrian patriotic opposition in talks

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged to involve in inter-Syrian negotiations the patriotic opposition acting inside Syria.

"The Geneva communiqué, as the UN SC Resolution 2118, stresses that the opportunity to participate in the national dialogue should be available to all groups of Syrian society,” the minister said. “So far, however, in the process are not involved the patriotic opposition groups operating inside Syria and showing active interest to participate in Geneva II. I believe this situation needs to be corrected by ensuring their inclusion in the talks, though not from the first day.”

Moscow “relies on the understanding of this problem, especially by our partners in the Arab League,” the minister pointed out.

 

Moscow urges to involve Iran in implementing the Geneva communiqué

Moscow urges to involve Iran in joint efforts on implementing the Geneva communiqué, Lavrov stated in his address to the Geneva II conference.

“The same fully applies to the need of involving Iran in our joint efforts on implementing the Geneva communiqué without attempting to make a certain interpretation of it,” the minister said.

“The essence of this document is that questions of Syria’s future should be decided on the basis of mutual assent of the government and the opposition,” he underlined.