The presidents of the United States and Russia have spoken by telephone about the situation in the Middle East – including the conflict in Syria and international negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program.
The phone call on February 21 was initiated by U.S. President Barack Obama to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
But a statement from the White House said that they also spoke about efforts to advance a political solution in Syria after the failure of two rounds of peace talks in Geneva earlier this month.
Washington says Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin also discussed the need for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime to adhere to its commitment to eliminate its stockpiles of chemical weapons.
The two also discussed U.S.-Russian cooperation in the P5+1 process on Iran.
The phone call on February 21 was initiated by U.S. President Barack Obama to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
But a statement from the White House said that they also spoke about efforts to advance a political solution in Syria after the failure of two rounds of peace talks in Geneva earlier this month.
Washington says Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin also discussed the need for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime to adhere to its commitment to eliminate its stockpiles of chemical weapons.
The two also discussed U.S.-Russian cooperation in the P5+1 process on Iran.