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U.S., Russia to continue talk on Syria ceasefire: U.S. State Department

Xinhua, December 9, 2016 Adjust font size:

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke on phone with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Thursday about continuing the discussion of a ceasefire in Syria, the U.S. State Department said.

"Secretary Kerry spoke by phone today with Foreign Minister Lavrov about the situation on the ground in Aleppo," said State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau here at the daily briefing, referring to a key battleground in Syria's civil war.

"They agreed to continue discussions about establishing a framework for a cease-fire that will allow the delivery of aid, of desperately needed humanitarian aid, as well as the safe departure of those who wish to leave the city," said Trudeau.

According to the spokeswoman, though Lavrov announced "technical discussions" in Geneva over the last weekend, the specific nature of the follow-on discussions were still being worked out.

Moscow and Washington have resumed consultations recently on the Syrian settlement after the U.S. suspended dialogue with Russia early October.

On Friday, Lavrov and Kerry met in Rome, where they agreed on a plan that would allow all militants to withdraw from eastern Aleppo.

Lavrov and Kerry met again in Hamburg, Germany, on Wednesday to discuss the ongoing multilateral efforts to achieve a cessation of hostilities in Aleppo, according to the U.S. State Department. Enditem