Events in Paris will affect the atmosphere and talks on
the Syrian settlement in Vienna, the foreign ministry's spokesperson says.
VIENNA, November 14. /TASS/. Events in Paris will affect the atmosphere and talks on the Syrian settlement in Vienna, representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said on Saturday.
Participants in the consultations in the Austrian capital city should do everything to demonstrate realistically their solidarity with France, she said.
"What has happened in Paris cannot leave unaffected both the atmosphere and the negotiations process," she said asking not to make early connections between the tragedy and the consultations in Vienna.
"All information should come from the investigation," she said.
Russian Foreign Ministry warns against early conclusions regarding reasons and objectives the terrorists had in Paris; as all information should come from investigators, Maria Zakharova noted.
"We heard yesterday the French president said it was a terrorist attack," she said. "All the rest information should come from the investigation, security authorities, experts. We should wait for detailed information and make conclusions afterwards, of course."
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has arrived in Vienna to participate in talks on Syria; the minister will also have a meeting with the US Secretary of State John Kerry before the talks on Syria begin.
"Within minutes the Russian delegation will begin working," she said. "Today, our work will begin with a bilateral meeting between Sergey Lavrov and the US Secretary of State John Kerry," she said. "After that, everyone will take part in a plenary session of the Syrian Support Group; and additional bilateral contacts of Sergei Lavrov are not excluded."
Paris terrorist attacks
A series of terrorist acts took place at six various venues in Paris Friday evening with the use of automatic weapons and explosive devices. Hostages were taken in the Bataclan concert hall where 1,500 people gathered for a rock concert. The president declared the state of emergency in the country and closed the state borders.
Five terrorists, according to preliminary data, took part in the terrorist acts in Paris, the French capital’s prosecutor Francois Molins said Saturday.
Meanwhile, Agence France Presse reported citing sources close to investigation that eight participants of the terrorist attacks were killed. Four attackers died in the Bataclan hall: three activated suicide belts, and one was liquidated by law enforcers. Three suicide bombers activated their belts near the Stade de France stadium. Another terrorist blew himself up near Bataclan, sources said.
Molins also said the death toll in the terrorist acts could exceed 120 people. He said there are confirmed data on the death of overall 38 people at various points in the city close to the Bataclan concert hall where the main tragedy occurred. "The figures are very serious, as, if we add that to the Bataclan death toll, there unfortunately is a probability that the final death toll will reach or even exceed 120."
The Elysee Palace said after an extraordinary ministerial conference led by President Francois Hollande that the French authorities have sent their 1,500-strong unit of servicemen to ensure security in Paris after the large-scale terrorist attack occurred in the French capital on Friday evening.
Source: ITAR-TASS 14-11-2015
