ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)<br/> <br />Syria said on Saturday (December 27) it is willing to participate in "preliminary consultations" in Moscow aimed at restarting peace talks next year to end its civil war.<br/> <br />"Syria is ready to participate in preliminary consultations in Moscow in order to meet the aspirations of Syrians to find a way out of crisis," state television said, quoting a source at the Syrian foreign ministry.<br/> <br />Moscow, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has pushed to restart talks that collapsed in Geneva in February.<br/> <br />Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said this month that he wanted Syrian opposition groups to agree among themselves on a common approach before setting up direct talks with the Damascus government.<br/> <br />But Lavrov did not specify which opposition groups should take part.<br/> <br />Russia has long backed Assad, including with arms supplies for Syria, but he has become a more important ally for Moscow since the 2011.<br/> <br />Arab Spri
