War in Syria ended, hotbeds of tension remain in areas uncontrolled by govt – Lavrov

Syria is returning to peace, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said, adding that only hotbeds of tension remain in the country.

“The Syrian war has ended indeed. The country is returning to normal peaceful life gradually. Separate hotbeds of tension only remain on the territories uncontrolled by the Syrian government, for example, in Idlib and the eastern bank of Euphrates,” he told Russia’s Trud newspaper.

The formation and launch of a committee, aimed at devising constitutional reform, will become an important stage of promoting the political process implemented by the Syrians themselves with the UN’s assistance, he said. The move will provide the Syrian government and opposition with an opportunity “to start a direct dialogue on the country’s future for the first time ever,” TASS quoted him as saying.

Russia favors restoration of Syria’s sovereignty, the fight against the consequences of terrorism, the return of all Syrians to their native land, and of the country itself to the ‘Arab family’, the minister said.