VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Russia hoped that the UN Security Council could approve the Geneva communique over Syria later this month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Saturday.
"We emphasized at a meeting with the U.S. secretary of state that Russia will push for the Security Council to approve the Geneva communique," Lavrov told a news conference after his talks with Hillary Clinton on the sidelines of the APEC 2012 gathering.
According to the senior Russian diplomat, the UN Security Council will convene a meeting over the Syrian crisis within 20 days.
The Geneva communique, agreed by major world powers on June 30, envisaged a Syrian-led transition.
Meanwhile, Lavrov reiterated Russia's opposition to sanctions against the crisis-torn country, calling on all players to use their influence on both sides in the Syrian conflict to sit at a negotiating table.
He also accused that some European countries have encouraged the Syrian opposition to reject the dialogue and continue the fight, urging all Syrian parties to stop bloodshed.
The diplomat also said Russia supported the Syrian opposition's idea to hold a conference of opposition forces in the Syrian capital Damascus.
Syria has been plunged into severe civil unrest since March 2011, with more than 17,000 people, mostly civilians, having reportedly been killed so far.
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