Damascus has agreed to drastically reduce Russian oil imports as part of talks with Washington over lifting the last major U.S. sanctions designation on Syria.

NEW: Damascus has agreed to drastically reduce Russian oil imports as part of talks with Washington over lifting the last major U.S. sanctions designation on Syria. The move would mark a major shift for Syria, which has relied heavily on Russian crude despite improving ties with the West. While U.S. officials say the cuts are not a formal condition for removing Syria from the state sponsors of terrorism (SST) list, Syrian sources said reducing Russian oil imports would help speed up the process. Source: Reuters