FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during a news conference following the talks with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in Moscow, Russia December 22, 2017. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke by telephone with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif about preparations for a Russian-hosted Syrian People’s Congress, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday in a statement.