Alwaght- The Russian, Indian and Chinese foreign ministers held a meeting in Moscow to discuss conflicts in the West Asia region, Ukraine and Afghanistan and terrorism.
During the 14th Russia-India-China (RIC) meeting held in Moscow, the ministers also discussed United Nations reforms.
"Even though this is not an anniversary [summit], the number of events conducted so far demonstrates that the RIC mechanism remains sought-after and works in an effective manner. This is a dialogue platform which has become an important factor in global politics," Lavrov said in opening the summit.
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, in turn, called on the RIC countries to play a key role in uniting international efforts against terrorism.
On the issue of UN Security Council reforms, the external affairs minister said she once again urged both Russia and China to take the lead in ensuring that the inter-governmental negotiations (IGN) process in the UN advanced swiftly.
“India’s permanent membership of the Security Council is long overdue and this anomaly needs urgent rectification,” Sushma Swaraj said.
Meanwhile Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Russia and the US are not engaged in any secret negotiations on Syria in Geneva. "We see a normal regime of working consultations as well as cooperation of the two countries within the framework of the International Syria Support Group, where Russia and the United States are co-chairmen, as well as within the framework of the ceasefire task force set up within this group," he said.
Lavrov stressed that statements on secret deals on Bashar al-Assad’s fate are aimed at undermining the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions.
The trilateral RIC format began with meetings during UN General Assemblies between 2003 and 2005, as well as during the 2004 CICA meeting in Almaty, Kazakhstan. RIC foreign minister meetings have been held independently of other summits since 2005.
