Russia is observing a certain activation of dormant cells of the terrorist group "Islamic State" (banned in the Russian Federation) in Syria, Alexander Lavrentyev, the Russian President's Special Representative for Syria, told reporters on Tuesday.
Lavrentyev noted that the situation in Syria remains alarming, and everything must be done to prevent an escalation of violence and a new round of armed confrontation in the country. "We all understand that the situation is very alarming. Everything must be done to prevent an escalation of violence and a new round of armed confrontation. This will be disastrous not only for Syria, but also for the entire region," he said.
According to Lavrentyev, among the priority issues that the parties will address at the inter-Syrian talks is the fight against terrorism. "Over the past three months, information is coming in, and we see a certain activation of dormant cells of the so-called IS. Increased fighting in the northwest, also the activation of radical groups entrenched there," he added.
According to Lavrentyev, the contact line between Syrian armed opposition units and Kurdish self-defense groups in the northeast of the country is also unsettled.
According to Lavrentyev, agreements with terrorist organizations operating in Syria are ruled out, the focus remains on their complete elimination.
"There was a discussion about what we need to do in the fight against international organizations recognized as terrorists by the UN Security Council, such as the Islamic State, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (both banned in Russia) and others. Once again, the imperative remains the complete destruction of these groups. There cannot be any compromise agreements with terrorists," he said. According to Lavrentyev, this issue will be among priorities at the international meeting on Syria in the Astana format in Sochi.
Position of Russia
According to the Russian President's Special Representative, Russia expects the international meeting on Syria to give impetus to the Syrian settlement.
"I will especially stress that we are going to give a certain impetus, but not to the work of the Astana processes, but to the process of the Syrian settlement. This is very important because the Astana format by itself still remains the only mechanism that allows to make any decisions and find ways to further resolve the Syrian crisis," he said.
Lavrentyev said that the participants of the meeting will also summarize the work already done and set benchmarks for further activities. "First of all, we will pay attention to the political settlement of Syrian crisis, support of the work of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva. Of course, we will talk to the Special Envoy [of the UN Secretary-General for Syria] Geir Pedersen about what we can do to create a constructive atmosphere around the work of the committee, this is very important," the Special Presidential Representative added.
Constitutional Committee
Russia believes that there is no alternative to the Syrian Constitutional Committee, Russia does not intend to dramatize the situation around the work of this forum in Geneva, Lavrentyev said.
"I emphasize that some people express certain disappointment with the results of the fifth session of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva, but the Russian delegation is not going to dramatize the situation and believes that this should not be done. Lavrentyev said: "During the fourth and fifth sessions a lot of interesting ideas and suggestions were made for further discussions and finding some kind of compromise solutions. - We should not give up, because the work of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva is the only international forum that can bring a tangible result. Of course, there is no alternative to that".
He added that Russia will support the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Syria, Geir Pedersen, "as much as it can, in order to help the sides to make some decisions, which will help to move the issue of the political settlement forward".
Earlier, Pedersen said the fifth meeting of the Syrian Constitutional Committee was a disappointment and a missed opportunity. According to the UN Emissary, "there is no clear plan of action for the future yet."
Talks on refugees
Turkey is interested in hosting a meeting on the return of Syrian refugees, the Russian President's Special Representative for Syria said.
He recalled that a conference on refugee return was held in Damascus last November. "There were proposals to hold regular rounds in Beirut, the Turkish side expressed interest in considering holding talks on refugees on its platform. So we will discuss what we should do to further develop this important issue," Lavrentyev said.
The 15th international meeting on Syria in the Astana format is taking place in Sochi on February 16-17. Bilateral and trilateral consultations will take place on February 16, and a plenary session will be held on February 17.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on materials from TASS