ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday that his country wants Kurds to remain an "integral" part of Syria, calling for inclusive elections in Syria.
“Naturally, we are interested in these elections being inclusive and in all ethnic and religious groups having the opportunity to take part in forming new legislative bodies," Lavrov said during a joint press conference with his Syrian counterpart Assad al-Shaibani in Moscow, reported Russia’s state-run TASS.
He added that the two discussed the Syrian interim government’s relations with Syrian Kurds.
"We are interested in the Kurds remaining integral members of Syrian society within the framework of the single state," the Russian foreign minister noted.
Russia, main backer of the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad, used to play the role of a mediator between Assad and the Kurdish administration in northeast Syria (Rojava).
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) chief Mazloum Abdi signed an agreement on March 10 to integrate all civil and military institutions in Rojava - including the SDF - under the authority of the Syrian state.
The US and France unsuccessfully tried to convene both sides in Paris earlier this month.
In an exclusive interview with Rudaw, Qutaiba Idlbi, director of American affairs at Syria's foreign ministry, stated on Wednesday that Damascus and the SDF will meet in Paris “soon.”
