Russian Spokeswoman: Zarif, Lavrov to Meet in Vienna to Discuss Syria Crisis
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian and Russian foreign ministers are scheduled to meet in Vienna on Thursday to explore ways for finding a political settlement to the crisis in Syria, Russia’s foreign ministry announced Wednesday.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov will discuss the latest developments in Syria during a meeting in Vienna on Thursday evening, Lebanon-based Arabic-language al-Mayadeen news network reported on Wednesday.
The meeting will take place before Friday talks on Syrian crisis between foreign ministers of Russia, US, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in Vienna.
The Russian spokeswoman also said the framework of organizing the meeting is being finalized.
Zakharova went on to say that Lavrov is also scheduled to sit down with his Lebanese, Iraqi and Egyptian counterparts in the Austrian capital.
According to an earlier statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry, Zarif and Lavrov spoke by telephone on Wednesday about preparations for the Thursday talks on the Syrian crisis.
“In developing the last contacts, Sergei Lavrov and Mohammad Zarif exchanged opinions on the preparations for a meeting slated for this week in Vienna of ‘foreign players’ and other key countries in the region to discuss ways of coordinating efforts in the fight against terrorism and action in intra-Syrian political talks soon to be launched,” the statement said.
The telephone conversation was the fourth between Zarif and Lavrov over the past week during which the two foreign ministers discussed the ongoing crises in the Middle East, particularly the Syria conflict.
They spoke over the phone on October 24, 26 and 27 preceded by a meeting between the foreign ministers of Russia, the United States, Saudi Arabia and Turkey in Vienna on October 23 which focused on the settlement of the Syria crisis.
Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011. Syrian army has been fighting several opposition factions and numerous militant groups, including ISIL.
On September 30, Russia began precision airstrikes on ISIL positions in Syria at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Since the beginning of the air campaign, Russian Aerospace Forces have carried out some 830 strikes, killing several hundred militants and destroying dozens of command centers, and depots used by the terrorists.
