DAMASCUS (Sputnik) — "Municipal authorities in Damascus have designated a 2.5-acre parcel of land in Qudsia al-Jadida, in so-called New Damascus, for this project," Alexander Kinshchak told RIA Novosti in an interview.
The foundation-stone laying ceremony is expected to take place soon, Moscow's envoy to Syria added. It will be attended by representatives of the Imperial Orthodox Palestinian Society, a Russian scientific society that was founded prior to the Russian Revolution.
Russian language studies were introduced as a compulsory discipline in Syrian schools last year. Russia and Syria have historically strong diplomatic and cultural ties. Thousands of Soviet and later Russian-educated Syrians have held high posts in Syria in politics, business and culture.
