Iran, Russia Call for Settling Syria Crisis through Diplomacy- Lavrov Stresses Iran Must Attend Int’l Conference on Syria

Iran, Russia Call for Settling Syria Crisis through Diplomacy Local Editor Iranian Ambassador to Russia Reza Sajjadi met with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov on Tuesday and discussed the regional developments and the Syrian crisis in particular, IRNA reported. Sajjadi and Bogdanov called for “halting the ongoing conflicts in Syria and settling the crisis through negotiations on the basis of Geneva Agreement on Syria.” They also called for fostering international cooperation to resolve the ongoing crisis through diplomatic means. Source: AFP 14-05-2013 - 12:03 Last updated 14-05-2013 - 12:03 Lavrov Stresses Iran Must Attend Int’l Conference on Syria

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Russia insists that Iran plays a key role in solving the current crisis in Syria, stressing that the Islamic Republic must attend an international conference on the Arab country. Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, slammed the United States, saying Washington has been seeking to increase the participation of countries which have been supporting the foreign-backed military opposition in Syria. “While Moscow calls for [the] participation of more members including Syria neighboring countries, Iran and Saudi Arabia in the second round of talks [in Geneva], Washington is trying to decrease the number of these participating countries and replace them with those countries who are supporting the militant groups in Syria,” Lavrov told Al-Mayadeen TV on Monday. At a joint press conference in Moscow on May 7, the Russian foreign minister and US Secretary of State John Kerry agreed to encourage the Syrian government and the armed opposition to find a political solution to the crisis. Moscow and Washington agreed to hold an “international peace conference” on Syria, which will serve as a follow-up to an earlier Geneva meeting, which was held in June 2012. Commenting on the agreement between Moscow and Washington, Lavrov said that nothing would be changed in this regard, but there were some differences among parties over the details of the international peace conference. The Russian foreign minister also condemned the move by the Arab League to hand Syria’s seat to the foreign-backed opposition, saying the decision was a “big obstacle for achieving peace in Syria.” Lavrov also dismissed claims that Hezbollah had interfered in Syria.

Source: Agencies 14-05-2013 - 10:48 Last updated 14-05-2013 - 10:48

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