Moscow, SANA – Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that creation de-escalation zones in Syria should be an important step towards consolidating the cessation of hostilities.

Lavrov made his remarks on Thursday during a press conference following talks with his Finnish counterpart, Timo Soini.

“A relatively new idea of setting up the de-escalation zones in Syria with the participation of all parties concerned and, of course, with the consent of the Syrian government, which should be an important step towards consolidating the cessation of hostilities, is discussed in Astana,” Lavrov said.

“We hope that the talks will continue in Geneva as early as this month, which are dedicated, above all, to efforts aimed at resolving an array of issues related to the political settlement of the conflict, when, in the end, the Syrian people themselves will determine the future of their country,” Lavrov said.

He noted that the Western countries have been trying to stall an impartial investigation of the alleged chemical weapons incident in Khan Sheikhoun in Idleb countryside.

Shaza/H. Said