Sputnik- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed in a phone call on Monday the situation in Syria and the preparation for intra-Syrian peace talks in Astana, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The intra-Syrian peace consultations in Kazakh capital, Astana, are expected to be held on January 23, with the opposition represented as a united bloc.

"The sides continued the discussion of the situation in Syria. The ministers emphasized the need to coordinate efforts in the context of the upcoming intra-Syrian talks in Astana," the ministry said in a statement.