"During the meeting, the issue of Syria was discussed. Both sides have confirmed that every effort to resolve the Syrian crisis, namely, sustaining the ceasefire, expanding the humanitarian access and beginning political process, must be, as provided in the UN Security Council resolutions, implemented without unilateral preconditions and attempts to make headway in one area by achieving progress in another," the statement read.
The sides agreed to continue contacts regarding the issue.
On September 9, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry announced a new peace plan to address the conflict in Syria in Geneva. The ceasefire deal was later shattered by numerous violations, which resulted in intensified fighting between the Syrian government and militants in Aleppo. The Syrian government later announced an end to the ceasefire regime.
Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with opposition factions and Islamist terrorist groups such as Islamic State and the Nusra Front, now known as Jabhat Fatah al Sham, both outlawed in Russia, fighting the Syrian Army.
