Putin, Trump discuss Syria's problems, says Kremlin

MOSCOW, November 21. /TASS/. Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia and Donald Trump of the U.S., who had arranged a telephone conversation, discussed the pressing aspects of the Syrian problem with accounts of the completing military operation against terrorists in Syria, the Kremlin press service said. "Putin stressed readiness to facilitate a durable political settlement process in Syria on the basis of the UN Security Council's Resolution 2254 in the spirit of agreements reached in the Astana format and provisions of the Joint Statement the two Presidents endorsed on November 11 at the APEC summit in Vietnam," the report said. "The sides stated among other things that the statement had produced an encouraging reaction in the Middle East," it said. The interlocutors also mentioned the importance of maintaining Syria's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. This should be done in the groundwork of principles to be mapped out in the course of pan-Syrian negotiations and Russia's initiative for convening the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi later this year targets exactly this objective, the press service said. Putin informed Trump on the results of the November 20 meeting with President Bashar al-Assad, in the course of which the Syrian leader confirmed commitment to the political process, the constitutional reform, presidential and parliamentary election. In addition to it, emphasis was made on the trilateral talks that the Presidents of Russia, Iran and Turkey are supposed to hold in Sochi on November 22. The three Vladimir Putin, Tayyip Recept Erdogan, and Hassan Rouhani plan to coordinate step towards further normalization in Syria, the press service said. On a broader plane, Putin once again spoke in favor launching further efforts together with the U.S. to rebuff terrorism. The Russian President noted practical importance of coordinated steps between the two countries’ intelligence services and Trump supported him. Read more