Lavrov: We hope the new US administration will accept invitation to Astana talks

Moscow, SANA – Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said it is right to invite representatives of the US and the UN to Astana talks on Syria, scheduled for January 23th.

“We’re now preparing the Astana meeting. We think it would be the right thing to invite the representatives of the UN and the new US administration to the meeting, taking into account that the meeting will take place on January 23, as planned,” Lavrov said at a press conference summing the results of the Russian diplomacy in 2016.

“We’re counting on the new [US] administration accepting this invitation and being represented by experts on any level they consider possible,” he added.

Lavrov expressed his hope that the new US administration will accept this invitation.

If they accept it, “It will be the first official contact during which we could begin discussing stepping up the efficiency of fighting terrorism in Syria,” Lavrov added.

The Russian Foreign Minister noted that the invitations for Astana talks will be focused on those parties that have real influence on the ground whatever their names are, stressing that the talks aim at consolidating the cessation of hostilities in Syria.

H. Said

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