MOSCOW. July 10 (Interfax) - Russia would welcome the United States' active involvement in developing the concept of de-escalation areas in Syria and is prepared for cooperation in this, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference in Moscow on Monday.
"The U.S. has been represented by observers at all rounds of the Astana process, and these were representatives dispatched from the Department of State, from Washington, at the last two rounds. We welcomed this decision by our American partners," Lavrov said.
"And we will welcome their active engagement, even though they are observers. The latest negotiations in Astana showed that their representative, acting Assistant Secretary of State Stuart Jones, has taken part in the discussion quite substantively and actively," he said.
"So, the doors to our cooperation on further developing the concept of de-escalation areas are actually open here as well," he said.