CHAIRMAN: DR. KHALID BIN THANI AL THANI
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: PROF. KHALID MUBARAK AL-SHAFI

World / Middle East

Russia: All talks participants agreed Syrians must decide own future

Published: 16 Oct 2016 - 10:09 am | Last Updated: 29 Nov 2021 - 11:27 pm
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND - OCTOBER 15: The talks on the ongoing crisis in Syria, at Beau-Rivage Palace Hotel in Lausanne, Switzerland on October 15, 2016. ( Turkish Foreign Ministry / Ahmet Gumus - Anadolu Agency )

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND - OCTOBER 15: The talks on the ongoing crisis in Syria, at Beau-Rivage Palace Hotel in Lausanne, Switzerland on October 15, 2016. ( Turkish Foreign Ministry / Ahmet Gumus - Anadolu Agency )

Reuters

MOSCOW: Russia's foreign ministry said all participants in talks in Lausanne on Saturday had agreed that Syrians alone should decide their future through inclusive dialogue, and the country should stay whole and secular.

The ministry said on Sunday that in order for a U.S.-Russian ceasefire agreement to succeed, Syria's moderate opposition must separate from Jabhat Fatah al Sham, previously known as the Nusra Front, and other "terrorist groups" affiliated with it.

"At the same time, it should be understood that operations against terrorists of Islamic State and the Nusra Front will be continued," the ministry said.