"Our position is clear, the US troops should not further stay on the territory of a sovereign state without approval from its government. It may negatively affect the congress. Moreover, we expect that the United States, as a permanent member of [UN] Security Council, will send its representative to the Sochi forum in the status of observer," Lavrentyev told reporters.
Lavrentyev went on by speaking about the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress, set to take place on January 29-30 in Russian resort city of Sochi, reported Sputnik.
"I think the meeting was successful, we have managed to agree on the list of participants of the forum… the participants of the congress will receive the invitations," Lavrentyev told reporters after consultations with Iranian and Turkish representatives regarding the organization of the Congress.
He stated that Moscow expected participation of the US side in the congress in Sochi as observers.
"We would like very much that the UN representatives be at the Sochi forum at the highest level. We hope that the UN secretary general will send his Special Envoy [for Syria] Staffan de Mistura here, who will participate actively in the opening of the forum," Lavrentyev told reporters after consultations with Iranian and Turkish representatives regarding the organization of the congress.
Publish Date: 20 January 2018 - 19:02
TEHRAN, Jan. 20 (MNA) – US troops should not further stay in Syria without approval from Damascus as this may negatively affect the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress, Russian Special Envoy to Syria Alexander Lavrentyev said Saturday.