Gatilov: Level of Moscow participation in Geneva talks on Syria not yet determined

Moscow, SANA – Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov announced Thursday that the level of Moscow participation in the forthcoming peace talks on Syria due on May 4 in Geneva is not determined yet.

“We received an invitation from the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura to participate in the consultations and we are ready for that,” Gatilov said in a statement.

“Moscow believes that steps must be taken for a resumption of Syria-Syrian talks. In this regard, de Mistura’s initiative to hold separate talks with representatives of the Syrian government, opposition groups and international key players is worth supporting,” he added.

Commenting on Russian’s intended level of participation in the talks, Gatilov said that this will be determined a short while before the start of talks.

Galtilov clarified that Moscow will not immediately engage in consultations but there will be bilateral meetings between de Mistura and the invited parties, first with the Syrian opposition groups and later with the Syrian government. After that, he said, the UN envoy withhold talks with Russia, the US and regional countries like Turkey, Iran and Egypt.

Manar al-Frieh/Manal

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