Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen discussed the prospects for the Syrian and Ukrainian settlement on the sidelines of the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Vienna on December 6, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on Thursday.

Axar.az reports citing TASS.

"[The parties] exchanged views on a number of pressing international problems, discussed the prospects for the Syrian and intra-Ukrainian settlement, the current Russia-EU relations with due account for the upcoming Austrian European Union presidency in the second half of 2018," the ministry said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry stressed that "during the conversation the parties took up some issues on the bilateral agenda, including the trade, economic, historical and memorial spheres." "They spoke highly of the cultural and humanitarian cooperation," including with reference to the Russia-Austria Tourism Year, which is nearing completion, and the forthcoming Year of Music and Cultural Routes.