Syrian, Moscow consultations show increase of tendencies towards more active search for ways to restore peace in Syria - Russian Foreign Ministry
MOSCOW. Jan 30 (Interfax) - Russia is ready to continue providing all possible assistance to Syrian contacts, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"We believe that the recent consultations reflect an increase in the tendencies in various parts of Syrian society towards a more active and effective search for ways to restore peace in Syria. We support these tendencies," the Russian Foreign Ministry's press and information department said in a commentary on the results of the first Syrian consultations held in Moscow, which was released on Friday.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in his speech reiterated Russia's firm intention to promote a political settlement in Syria on the basis of the principles of the Geneva communique of July 30, 2012 and its support of the efforts made in the Geneva process.
The Syrian consultations in Moscow ended on January 29. It was the first direct contact between Syrian government officials and the Syrian opposition since the Syrian negotiations were halted in February 2014. The meeting participants were invited to Moscow by the Russian Foreign Ministry with assistance from a group of moderators from Russian academic institutions, who were led by Vitally Naumkin, director of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
A speech given by Naumkin at a press conference following the Syrian consultations in Moscow was posted on the Russian Foreign Ministry website. It contains the "Moscow principles," in which the moderator summed up the aims from both sides at preserving Syria as a unified sovereign and whole state in which all population feels protected and comfortable. An address to the international community adopted by the meeting participants was also posted on the Foreign Ministry website.
Syrian government officials and opposition activists also spoke in favor of continuing consultations in the Moscow-style format," the Russian Foreign Ministry has reported.