The Russian deputy foreign minister said that the date for the next round of intra-Syrian talks depended on Russia-US coordination on the joint fight against al-Nusra Front.
The date for the next round of intra-Syrian negotiations depends on Russia coordinating with the United States documents on the joint fight against al-Nusra Front terrorist organization (Qaeda branch in the Levanst), Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said Tuesday.
“It will depend on how quickly the documents worked on by Russian and US military experts will be coordinated further. This applies to the delineation and location of the [Nusra Front] in order to be able to organize a more effective joint fight against this terrorist group to which the ceasefire does not extend,” Gatilov told reporters following trilateral Russia-US-UN talks.
The situation in Aleppo should not affect the resumption of intra-Syrian negotiations, Gennady Gatilov added.
“We believe there should be no preconditions for the start of the next round of intra-Syrian negotiations… Therefore, despite the fact that the situation in Aleppo indeed presents a serious problem, it should not serve as some kind of condition for the resumption of the intra-Syrian negotiating process,” Gatilov told reporters in Geneva.
He underscored the need for an improved humanitarian situation in the northern Syrian region for the next round of talks to go forward, but maintained that it too is not a precondition for dialogue.
“We had a fairly frank exchange of views, taking into account the latest developments in Syria and around this country. We came to a consensus on the need for further efforts to promote the political process and the resumption of intra-Syrian dialogue,” Gatilov added after trilateral Russian-US-UN talks.
Moreover, Russian and US military experts will hold talks on Syria in Geneva in a “matter of days,” Gatilov said.
“It was agreed that in the near future, Russian and US experts will continue this work [regular military working contacts],” Gatilov told reporters following trilateral Russian-US-UN talks, adding that the next military-to-military meeting is a “matter of days.”
He stressed that the experts of both countries will continue working to coordinate maps locating terrorist groups in Syria, adding that the sides also agreed to hold additional talks in the Russia-US-UN format.
Source: Sputnik
