No Agreement Yet between Moscow and Washington on Gunmen’s Exit from Aleppo Eastern Districts: Ryabkov

MOSCOW- Consultations between Russian and US experts on the situation in Syria, and particularly Aleppo, are continuing, a Russian Foreign Ministry official has said. However, the process is “slow” as Washington is pressing on with its own interests “to influence the situation on the ground.”

“There is some progress, but there are no agreements … we are still facing a case in which the United States is trying to use this channel to influence the situation on the ground for its own benefit,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told RIA Novosti on Sunday, according to RT.

 Progress during the latest meeting in Switzerland, which is being held behind closed doors, is “moving slowly,” the diplomat said, but added that negotiations would continue.

Head of the US State Department’s Press Office, Elizabeth Trudeau also told RIA Novosti on Sunday that she had “nothing to announce at this time.”

Earlier in the day, there were reports that Washington and Moscow allegedly tabled a proposal to gunmen in Aleppo that would offer them safe exit from the city.

Yet, the Russian deputy foreign minister refuted media reports about the alleged agreement. “No joint proposal on any agreements to be put on the table and to be considered by the opposition exists,” Ryabkov told RIA Novosti, adding that meanwhile Russian forces in Syria are doing everything possible to allow safe passage to civilians seeking to leave the city.

 H.M