Lavrov to hold talks with Qatar’s foreign minister in Moscow

MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold negotiations with Qatar’s counterpart Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah in Moscow on Friday to focus on the settlement in Syria and bilateral economic cooperation. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Lavrov and Al Attiyah will discuss in detail further steps as part of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), including in the context of the December 18 ministerial meeting of the group and the UN Security Council session in New York. The ISSG consists of the Arab League, China, Egypt, the European Union, France, Germany, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and the United States. "We continue considering as unconditional priority the goal of creating a broad international coalition on the fight against the Islamic State and other terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq," the ministry said. Another issue to be discussed at the upcoming talks will be strengthening political coordination as part of the strategic dialogue between Russia and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf. Moscow will host the next round of the ministerial meeting in 2016. The foreign ministers will discuss the issues of ensuring security in the Persian Gulf zone, including in the context of the Russian initiative in this sphere. The sides will also focus on coordinating the actions of Russia and Qatar in the energy sphere, and namely gas, amid the remaining tensions on the global hydrocarbon markets. Moscow calls for stepping up contacts at the international venues, including the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), headquartered in Doha, Qatar. The top diplomats will also discuss the possibilities of using the potential for strengthening business cooperation between Moscow and Doha, first of all in the investment sphere. "An important role here is devoted to the Joint Russian-Qatari commission for trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation, and its first session chaired by Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Qatar’s Energy and Industry Minister Mohammed Saleh Al Sada was held in March 2015 in Doha," the ministry said. Read more