Al-Moallem meets counterparts in New York
New York -Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem met on Wednesday in New York with Sushma Swaraj, the External Affairs Minister of India, Ramtane Lamamra, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, Bruno Eduardo Rodriguez Parrilla, the Foreign Minister of Cuba and Foreign Minister of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Ri Su Yong.
The meetings were held on the sidelines of the UN’s 70th General Assembly in New York, SANA reported.
The talks dealt with the current situation on the international arena with emphasis put on the situation in Syria.
The ministers expressed their support for the Syrian leadership and people and their countries’ readiness to promote bilateral cooperation with Syria in various sectors.
The ministers also expressed their support for the Russian position which came in response to the Syrian government’s request and in cooperation with Syrian Arab Army to enhance anti-terrorism efforts.
The Indian and Algerian ministers invited minister al-Moallem to visit their countries to continue discussions.
Al-Moallem reviewed with the ministers Syria’s efforts to combat terrorism and Syrian-Russian coordination in this filed, expressing Syria’s appreciation for their countries’ stances which support Syria’s right at international platforms.
The minister stressed the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation between Syria and the four countries, particularly in facing western plans, emphasizing the necessity of enforcing the UN Security Council counter-terrorism resolutions, stressing that Syria will continue to combat terrorism till eliminating it in order to pave the way for a political solution for the crisis.
Minister al-Moallem also met Omani Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs Yusuf bin Alawi, discussing with him the efforts being exerted with some Arab and international countries to support Syria in combating terrorism in preparation for a political solution.
The Omani minister expressed readiness to visit Damascus to help in reaching a solution for the crisis in Syria that preserves its sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.
Al-Moallem also held talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, discussing with him counter-terrorism efforts and the Syrian-Russian military cooperation in this regard.
They also discussed the proposal put forward by the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura about establishing action groups within the framework of finding a political solution for the crisis.
The two sides’ views matched regarding the ongoing anti-terrorism drive to prepare ground for reaching a political solution.