Lavrov: Diplomatic solution for Syrian crisis derailed

In a special news conference on the Syrian crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that attempts to resolve the Syrian crisis diplomatically are being derailed. He said the West has no “cogent proofs” of Syrian government responsibility for the chemical attack in Damascus on Aug. 21. The Russian minister stressed there is no alternative to direct dialogue for solving the crisis and called for the stalled Russian-US initiative of last May for an international conference on Syria to take place. Iran must be invited at the highest level, he said, referring to one of the items at issue with Washington.