Russian, German FMs hail progress in settlement of Syria crisis

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, on Wednesday hailed progress in the settlement of the Syria crisis.

Lavrov said the cease-fire in Syria is strengthening and works generally well, according to an official transcript released by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Lavrov said that both Russia and Germany believed the inter-Syrian dialogue should be held with an authentically inclusive nature as the talks include discussions of foundations of the Syrian government.

He reiterated Russia's demand for the participation of Syrian Kurds in the talks.

Meanwhile, Lavrov noted that the Russian side is still monitoring the activities on the Syrian-Turkish border, including crossing of militants and illegal oil traffic.

"In general, this flow has not run dry altogether, but it has decreased considerably," Lavrov said, adding that both Russian forces in Syria and the U.S.-led coalition are taking responsive measures.

For his part, Steinmeier said the political settlement process of the Syria crisis has "never ever managed to advance over the past five years as far as we have today."

He stressed that all relevant parties should continue efforts and jointly exert pressure on conflicting parties in Syria in order to guarantee a successful settlement of the crisis.

Steinmeier expressed the hope that Turkey would return to the path of reconciliation with different national groups including the Kurds.

He also noted that talks on prisoner swap should be arranged as soon as possible between representatives of the Syrian government and opposition forces.

"In the end, we should reach an agreement on a unified secular state in Syria where all the ethnic groups could live in peace," Steinmeier said.

The latest round of negotiations between the Syrian government and opposition forces is due to finish on Thursday, with the second round coming in April. Endi