UN special envoy for Syria urges global community to listen to Russia on Syrian crisis

‘”The United Nations’ special peace envoy to Syria said it was time for the world to listen more closely to Russia on the four-year-long crisis that has cost more than 210,000 lives and fuelled an unprecedented growth of Islamist extremism that has spread across the Middle East,” the Independent said.

The diplomat stressed that Moscow and Damascus have close long-term ties that can play the crucial role in the crisis settlement. “Russia has influence on Damascus, and it’s very important that they get involved,” de Mistura was quoted by the newspaper as saying. “The two countries’ relationship goes back to the time when Bashar al-Assad’s father was in power. Therefore the Russians do have a knowledge of the system and the way they think,” he added.’

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