LONDON, May 17 (RIA Novosti) - In a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, UK Prime Minister David Cameron pledged assistance in organizing an international conference to promote a political solution to the ongoing civil war in Syria.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced after a Moscow meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry on May 7 that the two countries had decided to hold an international conference at the end of May, aimed at facilitating a solution to the Syrian crisis through political dialogue.
“The PM made clear his support for the US-Russia initiative to hold a peace conference as soon as possible and said that the UK was willing to do all it could to help,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement.
During the conversation, the two leaders “reiterated their commitment to keep driving this process forward, engaging with partners in the region too,” the statement reads.
Putin and Cameron plan to keep in regular touch between now and their next meeting at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June to maintain the momentum.
“US, Russia and UK clearly share the same aim: to find a resolution to the conflict that ends the killing and prevents violent extremism taking hold, with a transitional government with full executive powers, established with the consent of both sides, that preserves the integrity of the Syrian state and its institutions,” the UK prime minister’s office said.
The Kremlin also issued a brief statement on the conversation earlier in the day.
