Russia urges Annan to deepen contacts with Syrian opposition

Moscow, July 13 (Xinhua-ANI): Russia hopes UN- Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan could deepen his contacts with the Syrian opposition, a senior foreign ministry official said Friday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told Interfax news agency that Annan, who is to visit Moscow next week and meet Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, should step up his efforts mainly with the Syrian opposition.

As top negotiator in the crisis settlement process, Annan's contacts with the Syrian opposition have not yielded any "practical results," Gatilov said, adding that Russia's international "partners" seemed unprepared to work with the opposition as actively as Moscow.

Meanwhile, Russia will continue its support for Annan and his six-point peace plan, which is "aimed at solving the crisis in Syria via political and diplomatic methods," Gatilov said.he Annan plan proved to be the "only practical platform" for tackling the domestic conflict in Syria, which was echoed by the Geneva accord reached by world powers last month, said the diplomat.

Gatilov said earlier this week that Russia will not let the UN Security Council pass a Western-proposed draft resolution to impose sanctions against Syria.

Such resolutions would be "unbalanced," as they only require the Syrian government to fulfill its obligations, said the official. (Xinhua-ANI)