MOSCOW. Sept 9 (Interfax) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said he expects his upcoming tripartite negotiations with the foreign ministers of Sudan and South Sudan in Moscow to contribute to the settlement of the intra-Sudanese crisis.
"We certainly favor the normalization of friendly relations between South Sudan and Sudan and hope that the Sudanese foreign minister's upcoming negotiations scheduled for tomorrow will be useful and productive," Lavrov said at a meeting with South Sudan's Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Benjamin Barnaba in Moscow.
"Moscow supports efforts being made by international mediators, primarily African mediators," to settle the intra-Sudanese crisis, he said.
Barnaba thanked Russia for the organization of a tripartite meeting in Moscow to be attended by the South Sudanese and Sudanese officials.
"We believe this meeting will make an important contribution to the development of relations between our countries [South Sudan and Sudan]," Barnaba said.
He said he was sure that Russia would help "resolve the situation and normalize relations between our states."