epa03859032 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem (L) attend a news conference after their meeting in Moscow, Russia, 09 September 2013. The pair met to discuss the the situation in and around Syria. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad denied 08 September that he had anything to do with the alleged chemical weapons attack near Damascus on 21 August, in excerpts of an interview on PBS. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY