Lavrov on the situation on the Korean Peninsula: From the "language of sanctions" to negotiations

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke by phone today with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson about further steps to end the conflict in Syria, the holding of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress on January 29 and 30 in Sochi, but also about the situation on the Korean Peninsula, Russian media reports. Lavrov and Tillerson discussed preserving the territorial integrity of Syria and ending the conflict in that country, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced, as reported by the Tass agency. One of the topics of the conversation was to encourage direct negotiations between the Syrian government and the opposition, without any preconditions. During the conversation, the situation on the Korean Peninsula was also discussed, and the Russian minister emphasized that it is necessary to move from the "language of sanctions" to the negotiation process as soon as possible. As reported by Tass, the conversation was initiated by the American side. At the negotiations in Astana on December 22, Russia, Turkey and Iran reached an agreement to hold the National Dialogue Congress in the Russian resort on the Black Sea on January 29 and 30.