MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Rudskoy said the number of daily ceasefire violations in Syria was decreasing, which, he said, created conditions for holding peace talks with the opposition in Astana on January 23.
"The Russian Defense Ministry supports the expansion of the number of participants on the part of the opposition. However, the negotiating process should involve those of its representatives who have real influence among armed groups 'on the ground'," Rudskoy said.
"A prerequisite for participation in the talks is a written confirmation of accession to the regime of cessation of hostilities by a particular armed group, indicating its strength, controlled territory, as well as the state acting as the guarantor of fulfillment of the truce conditions by the group," he said.
"This difficult and delicate work with addresses of opposition representatives has been conducted by our experts for the past two months," Rudskoy said.
"Its goal is to create conditions to ensure, during talks in Astana, real dialogue between all responsible parties in the interest of the people of Syria," he said.
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