Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Monday Moscow is in regular contact with Damascus on issues including establishing safe zones in Syria.

“We are in contact with Damascus on a daily basis. The consultations are confidential in nature, so all of these issues are of course being discussed,” Bogdanov told reporters on the sidelines of one of the Valdai Discussion Club conferences.

Moreover, Bogdanov said Moscow hopes that the various Syrian opposition platforms form a single delegation at peace talks in Geneva, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said Monday.

“We hope [for the formation of a unified opposition delegation] because ultimately they all traveled there to fulfill UN Security Council Resolution 2254, so the overall goal is clear,” Bogdanov told reporters.

The Riyadh- and Moscow-based groups could meet later in the day in Geneva, he added.

Meanwhile, Bogdanov added that Moscow favors Kurdish participation at intra-Syrian negotiations.

“We would like it so that other representatives participated… There is still much concern about the representation of the Kurds. We are for the involvement of representatives of the Kurds,” Bogdanov said.

Only the Syrian people can determine their future, including the fate of President Bashar Assad, without outside interference, the Russian official stressed.

“We believe that only the Syrian people, without outside interference, can determine their own future. This also applies to the fate of President Bashar Assad,” Bogdanov said at a conference on the Middle East held by the Valdai Discussion Club.

Source: Sputnik