WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Kawar explained that the removal of President Bashar Assad from power has been a topic of discussion for nearly seven years, but the rise of Daesh terror group forced the parties to the conflict to focus on defeating the group.
"We keep insisting that the political process — the Geneva process — should not be forgotten … and now with the zone that we created, it’s important that it works," Kawar said.
While Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the Syrian people should decide the fate of their leadership, the US and many of its EU and Middle Eastern allies have been calling for Assad's removal from power.
During the course of the Syrian war, the international community has held several rounds of negotiations aimed at resolving the conflict, most notably in Geneva and Astana.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said last week that the next round of intra-Syria talks in Geneva will take place in early September.
