Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed conflicts in the Middle East and bilateral cooperation at a meeting with his Syrian counterpart Faisal Mekdad. The text of his opening speech at the talks is posted on the Russian foreign ministry's website on Wednesday.
Lavrov, opening the talks, also said that a ministerial meeting between Russia and the Arab League could take place in the upcoming months. "In addition to bilateral cooperation, regional and international issues play an important role. We see how the situation in the region is changing, primarily in terms of restoring the rights of the Syrian Arab Republic in the Arab League. We will continue to support this positive trend, positive sentiments in the Arab world during the next ministerial meeting between the League and Russia, which we plan to organize in the coming months," the text reads.
Lavrov also touched on the topic of the Syrian settlement, stressing that Moscow will insist on fair arrangements based on a UN Security Council resolution. "This involves restoring the sovereignty, the territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic, the elimination of the terrorist threat. We are actively cooperating with you in all these areas," he said.
"There are many other protracted conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa. I will single out the Palestinian problem. The so-called Middle East settlement is not only stagnating, but is also rolling back the principles endorsed at the UN Security Council, at the General Assembly and within the framework of the Arab Peace Initiative," the Russian minister added.
Lavrov pointed to the efforts of Moscow and Damascus in the context of defending the principles of the UN's work. "This is what the work of the Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter, created not so long ago with the participation of Russia and the Syrian Arab Republic, is aimed at. It gathers supporters of international law to counterbalance a group of Western countries that deny international law and promote their own invented 'rules'," he stressed.
The Russian foreign minister expressed confidence that meetings with his Syrian counterpart and the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Kremlin will take the strategic partnership of the two countries to a new level.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS