Russian, Chinese diplomats discuss ceasefire, political process in Syria

MOSCOW, January 13. /TASS/. Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Middle East and North Africa Department, Sergey Vershinin, and Special Envoy of the Chinese Government on Syrian Issue, Xie Xiaoyan, discussed the implementation of the ceasefire agreements and efforts aimed at relaunching the political process in Syria. "The situation in Syria is going through a very important and sensitive stage," Vershinin said after the meeting. "Today’s consultations made it possible for us to exchange views on further steps to implement the cessation of hostilities and relaunch the political process in Syria." "I briefed our Chinese friends in detail on Russia’s efforts to arrange the meeting in Astana, which will be an important step in our efforts to consolidate the ceasefire and support the relaunching of the political process in Geneva," Vershinin added. Xie Xiaoyan too described the talks in Moscow as very useful. "We had a very useful discussion today, we discussed the whole range of issues. China and Russia should have an opportunity to discuss and coordinate their efforts on Syria," he said. Read more