Publish Date: 14 September 2017 - 18:50

TEHRAN, Sep. 14 (MNA) – Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and South Africa Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari who is currently in Astana met with Putin’s Special Envoy on Syrian Affairs Alexander Lavrentiev.

This meeting was held as part of bilateral consultations in Syria’s sixth round of International Conference in Astana which took place today, Thursday, September 14.

During this meeting the negotiating sides exchanged views on the latest developments in Astana Talks and discussed the ways to reduce tensions in the region.

The sixth round of Astana Process on Syria focuses on creating the fourth safe zone in Idlib province.

The safe zones, created with help from Russia, Turkey, and Iran, have been operating in southern Syria, Eastern Ghouta and Homs province. Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov has expressed hope that the meeting on Astana will conclude with consensus on the establishment of a de-escalation zone in Idlib province, which he deemed to be more difficult than the other zones.