Geneva 2 will be held on the level of foreign ministers of 30 countries

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov said that Geneva 2 will be held on the level of foreign ministers of 30 countries, with representatives of Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey participating in its preparation.
In a statement on Tuesday, Bogdanov said that Russia and the US are discussing the participation of Saudi Arabia and Iran in the conference, asserting the need for everyone to be represented in it and for its resolutions to be legally binding.
Bogdanov said that Moscow will continue communiqués with the Syria opposition to prepare for Geneva 2, noting that opposition representative understand the importance of the conference but the problem lies in them agreeing with each other.
He stressed the need for the Syrian government and opposition to hold negotiations and for the conference to focus on consensus, saying that the opposition representatives he met affirmed that there is no option other than a peaceful solution.
Bogdanov also underlined the need for UN Envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi to submit a list of invitees to Geneva 2 by the end of December, adding that the conference will be open in terms of number of days and that funding hasn’t been finalized yet.
He also said that the process of dismantling chemical weapons in Syria is proceeding well.
Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Bogdanov agreed during a meeting with the so-called “Doha coalition” delegation in Geneva on Monday to continue communication for stopping violence and launching the political process in Syria.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry added that the two sides agreed on continuing vigorous communication for turning the armed confrontation, which caused the exacerbation of humanitarian situation in Syria, into a political process.
The statement added that both sides discussed the preparations for holding Geneva 2 international conference on Syria.
The UN on Monday announced that Geneva 2 conference will be held next January 22.
Gatilov discusses humanitarian situation in Syria with Red Cross
Meanwhile, the Russian foreign Ministry said that Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov discussed with Chairman of the International Committee of Red Cross Peter Maurer the humanitarian situation in Syria.
“Gatilov appreciated the objective, unbiased work of the Red Cross in Syria while Maurer thanked Russia for its efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Syria,” a statement by the Foreign Ministry said.
It added that the meeting was held on the sidelines of consultations among Russia, the UN and the US in Geneva preparing for the conference on Syria.
Russia continues work with Syrian government & opposition for fruitful results of Geneva2
Russian Foreign Ministry has stated its intention to continue to work with “the Syrian government” and the “opposition” to resolve issues related to the framework of the international conference on Syria, Geneva 2, scheduled on January 22 .
In a statement released by “Russia Today” website on Tuesday, the Ministry stressed that a number of important issues must be resolved, including the participation of Syrian delegations, government and opposition, without preconditions and coordination regarding the countries to be invited to the conference.
The statement emphasized that fruitful resolutions of these issues depend on the ability of the Syrian parties to unite to confront terrorism invading Syrian territories.
The statement concluded: “The crisis in Syria can only be resolved through political means.”

Source: Breaking News Network