An adviser to President Dmitry Medvedev says Russia's priority for Syria is to persuade all sides to negotiate a peaceful end to the crisis, ahead of talks Sunday with the United Nations and Arab League envoy to the country.
Russia, along with China, vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution aimed at pressuring Syrian leader Bashar Assad, complaining that the measure did not call for Assad’s opposition to stop fighting. But Russia has supported Kofi Annan’s activities as envoy.
Medvedev’s foreign policy adviser, Sergei Prikhodko, said in a briefing statement Saturday that Russia’s top priority for Syria is a swift halt to the violence and to persuade the opposition "to sit at the negotiating table with government representatives and reach a peaceful resolution of the crisis."
