Russian deputy FM discusses Syria settlement with opposition negotiations commission leader

Russian Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and the African Countries Mikhail Bogdanov has discussed settlement in Syria during a telephone conversation with Nasr al-Hariri, chief negotiator for the opposition Syrian Negotiations Commission (SNC), the Russian Foreign Ministry has said. A number of issues related to the Syrian crisis settlement under Resolution 2254 of the UN Security Council were discussed during the conversation, TASS reported on Thursday. “The need to completely eradicate the terror groups Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) and Jabhat Al-Nusra was stressed, as well as the provision of unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Syria,” according to the statement. It added that Deputy Foreign Minister Bogdanov and al-Hariri also discussed the development of a stable negotiation process between the Syrian government and the constructive opposition in order to restore national accord. The SNC is a Syrian opposition group that has gained the highest recognition among the Western states.