Russia insists Syrian Kurds included in Geneva peace talks

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Sunday that the Syrian Kurds should be invited to the intra-Syrian peace talks in Geneva.

"We believe that the process that begins in Geneva must necessarily include the Kurds, if we all really mean what we say when we declare commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria," Lavrov said in an interview with Russia's REN TV channel.

"We will vehemently insist on the UN not caving in to ultimatums and sending an invitation to the Kurds to join the negotiating table from the very start of the talks," he said.

Lavrov also slammed Turkey for opposing the participation of the Kurds, and criticized Ankara's "creeping expansion" into Syria.

"While demanding that Kurdish positions are not strengthened in Syria, Turkey has been claiming its sovereign right to create security zones on Syrian territory," Lavrov said.

There was no immediate response from Turkey. Ankara has dismissed claims about its military deployment inside Syria.

Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday that Turkey continued to shell Kurdish forces in Syria.

The new round of reconciliation talks between the Syrian government and opposition in Geneva is scheduled to be held on March 14-24.

The previous round of talks ended last month with no tangible results, but intensified international efforts have managed to establish a cessation of hostilities in Syria, which started from midnight of Feb. 26. Endit