January 8, 2014 - 09:39 AMT
Lavrov, Kerry to meet in Paris to discuss Syria conference: report

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will meet on January 13 in Paris to discuss Iran’s possible role in the upcoming Syrian peace talk, RIA Novosti reported, citing a source in the ministry.

The source confirmed earlier reports of the United Nations saying that the two officials were planning to meet next week.

“That meeting will be held in Paris,” the source told RIA Novosti.

UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said earlier that Lavrov and Kerry will hopefully reach an agreement on Iran’s possible participation in a so-called Geneva 2 peace conference in Montreux, Switzerland, on January 22.

U.S. officials said this week that Iran could be able to play a helpful role in the peace talks from the sidelines.

No official invitation has been sent to Tehran yet.